As I See It
by Link and Luigi
Summary: They have to take it one year at a time. Everyone will see the same event in a different fashion. Somehow, a story seems more complete this way. partially AU
1. As I See It

**Hi everyone. We're back! I know we said in the Naruto Primer that we would not be submitting until December 1st but, combined with pressure from various fans to submit early and recent developments in the plot of the series of Naruto, we find ourselves backed into a corner. Therefore, even though it will make everyone so sad, we have decided to submit this early as you can so plainly see.**

**Like the Naruto Primer, a chapter will be submitted once a day. Every day. So come back and visit us once a day. Every day.**

**Even though the rate of updates will be identical to that of the Naruto Primer, we'll say outright and quite clear that this is NOT the Naruto Primer: Platinum Edition. This is an entire different series altogether and if you're reading this expecting to see a continuation of the Naruto Primer then you will be disappointed. However, we do believe it is a good relief and a fun story...if you're willing to make the commitment to the story.**

**As a final note, this series takes off IF Sasuke had decided not to leave the village on that fateful night. This is if everything ended up being relatively normal.**

-As I See It-

One Year Later

Everyone is pretty sure that he or she is the center of the universe. They all see the same event in a different way. How is everyone growing up? What will their reactions to the new events in the village be?

Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura were all unable to progress to the final tournament in the Chuunin exam. Ino and Chouji also failed when it came to making it through the exams. Neji and Shino, on the other hand, were quite successful. All of their teammates can't help but be happy for their newly promoted pals but could there also be some secret jealousy?

The four teams of ninjas that we have come to know and love can't stay twelve forever. Eventually, everyone grows up.

Will Sasuke ever become a chuunin?

Will Chouji be able to focus on his training?

Will Lee be able to prove to everyone he can be a great ninja?

Will Hinata gain some courage?

Will Naruto get through to Sakura?

Will Ino become one of the only great female ninjas?

Will Neji ever get over his bitterness?

Will Kiba retain all his friendships?

Will Sakura ever be able to woo Sasuke?

Will Shikamaru get a break?

Will Tenten continue her training?

Will Shino go on to bigger and better things?

All these questions, and many more, will be answered. One year at a time.


	2. Uchiha Sasuke: I'm Not Bitter

Uchiha Sasuke; 1 Year Later

Age 13

-I'm Not Bitter-

Why does it matter? Why SHOULD it matter?

Who really cares? As long as I know I'm chuunin level, that's all that's important. So what if I didn't even make it to the tournament this time. How could I have made it to the final tournament as only a rookie and not made it this time with a year of experience under my belt?

I'm not bitter. I know I'm better than all the people in that chuunin exam. After all, I watched the thing.

Of course it bothered me. Does no one understand the importance of becoming an excellent ninja? I have to kill Itachi and as long as I'm stuck as a genin training with two losers like Naruto and Sakura, I'm never going to be able to progress any further. Everyone's holding me back and there's nothing I can do about it until next time.

But I'm not bitter.

I started this morning just like any morning. I poured myself a bowl of Ninja Pebbles, the best cereal in the world, and took my time eating. I've long since realized that Kakashi is going to be late every single day so showing up at the appointed time is a waste of everyone's time.

Every time I look at our Uchiha crest, all I can think about is Itachi. And how I'm still a genin. And how he's STILL alive and there's nothing I can do. And how no one really seems to be putting any sort of motion into effect of killing him. Of course, I WILL be the one to finally kill him, but you'd think that other people would be at least TRYING…

I was walking. I saw Shino. He was carrying something folded up in the plastic bag. It was a piece of clothing, and it was green.

He looked briefly at me and then forward again, as if I was not interesting enough for him to take more than a first glance in my direction, even though I definitely am. I passed by him and looked down at the plastic bag.

It was a chuunin vest. He passed the chuunin exam.

Where I could not succeed, he did.

I quickened my pace and tried not to look back at him, but I knew he was thinking the same thing. He was mocking me on the inside. Curse Shino. I'm so much better than him.

I arrived at our team's meeting spot where Naruto and Sakura were waiting. At least, I figured, Naruto and Sakura didn't pass either.

"Good morning, Sasuke!" said Sakura cheerfully.

I decided that today I would just completely ignore her and see what sort of reaction that would get out of her. It had been an entire year since we had graduated the academy and Sakura still things that she and I are meant to be. You'd THINK that at a sensible age like thirteen, she would finally take a hint. I have never and will never have any interest in her whatsoever. The only thing I'm concerned with is becoming a better ninja and perhaps if she concerned herself more with that then she would amount to something as well. Never something like me, but just something in general. ANYTHING would be more than she is right now so she might as well.

I think she noticed because she frowned. But I pretended not to be interested. Don't get me wrong, I was definitely NOT interested but I tried to make it a lot more obvious than it actually was.

"Sasuke, you are LATE!!" said Naruto, pointing at me. "I hope you're not going to make a habit of this!!"

I shook my head in disbelief. How could someone be THAT stupid? He continued to point and growl and make obscene noises and just when I was about to turn around and tell him to shut up, Kakashi appeared.

"Good morning, students." He said. "Today, I'm late because—"

"Don't bother!!" yelled Sakura and Naruto.

I don't know why he always tried to think up a new excuse every time he was late. All he ever succeeded in was getting us even more angry at him; first for being late and second for lying.

"Well it's official." Kakashi went on as if he had not been yelled at. "Gai, Asuma AND Kurenai all have a chuunin on their team and I do not."

"That's not nice!" Sakura said.

I knew they did. I had seen Shino with his. I figured he'd get his vest. After all, he beat _me_ in the preliminaries. He had come in second in the tournament, but second only to Neji whom I assumed was the one from Gai's team who had become a chuunin.

But who was Kakashi to make such an announcement? He was looking directly at me; I knew it. How embarrassing. I was practically on the same level as Sakura.

Kakashi then launched into an annoyingly long explanation of the various things we need to improve upon and the ways in which he was going to help us improve them. It was quite irritating because most of the things he mentioned were things that I most definitely did not need to work on. He was trying not to mention any names, but everyone knew it was only a fluke that I lost to Shino.

I lost to Shino. And now he's a chuunin.

I don't even like the sound of that.

If Shino were here right now, I would have proven to everyone that a single match couldn't determine the ability of a ninja.

"We're going to do a lot of individual training today." I suddenly heard Kakashi say. "It will be strenuous work, but I feel as though you three will—"

Kakashi started to trail off and then look at the sky.

We all waited for him to continue.

But he didn't.

"Will…" Naruto led.

"Can we get a rain check on this?" Kakashi said, looking back at us.

"What?" the three of us said in unison.

"I have to go."

With that, he disappeared.

"WHAT was that?" I said finally.

"Obviously he was preoccupied by something!" said Sakura, sounding cheerful, but she usually does whenever Kakashi cancels training early. "So let's all go out to lunch! It'll be fun!"

"Yeah!" said Naruto.

"Um…Naruto." Said Sakura. "YOU'RE not invited."

"What?!" demanded Naruto. "You said ALL!!"

As the two of them continued to fight in the background, I considered it all. I WAS hungry. What's the harm in going out to eat? I wasn't afraid of leading Sakura into believing that I liked her or anything because she'll believe that whether I eat lunch with her or not.

It would be sort of a drag to have to go out with Naruto and Sakura though. However, there's always the chance that Sakura will pick up the bill for me, so why not give it a shot?

"Sure." I said, not concerning myself with the fact that those two were in the middle of speaking with each other.

"Really?!" Sakura said, immediately turning her back to Naruto.

If I considered Naruto to be a friend at all, I would probably point Sakura in his direction. But since I don't like Naruto in the least bit, I'll just ignore them both all together.

We seated ourselves at a local restaurant, one that has a grill in the middle of the table. I was going to leave all the grilling to Sakura and Naruto.

"Sasuke, this is a DREAM!" Sakura said, scooting her chair closer to mine. In response, Naruto scooted his chair closer to Sakura so the three of us were scrunched over on to one side of the table. We looked pretty foolish.

I didn't reply. I only stood up with a sigh and moved my chair over to the other side of the table.

Sakura, of course, moved her chair closer to mine, but so it was more in the middle of Naruto and I, hoping to end the cycle before it began.

As I looked at the menu, I could only think of three things.

One; Itachi. How DARE he kill my clan. It's not even HIS clan anymore. As far as I'm concerned, I'm the last Uchiha. When I got my hands on him, I was going to kill him in the most terrible way I could think of. I've already improved on my speech from last time I saw him. My NEW speech will scare him so bad. But still… WHY did he kill the clan?! Man, I hate him for that!!

Two; Shino. How did he become a chuunin instead of me? How did he beat me in the preliminaries? That was just so completely unfathomable that I don't even know how to explain it to people! Just thinking about it made me feel embarrassed. I knew the chuunin vest that he had now was rightfully mine, even though I deserved one last year too. I mean, the guy who was overlooking the tournament said himself that I was at chuunin level.

Third; what was I going to order? There was so much to choose from…

I suddenly zoned in right in the middle of one of Sakura and Naruto's many arguments about something petty. I would have commented about how much they were both SO annoying, but I caught some people coming in the restaurant out of the corner of my eye.

The presence of Neji, Tenten and Lee normally would not offend me in the least bit. But, as Lee came over to worship Sakura, I couldn't help but take note of something that I was not all that enthusiastic to see.

Neji in a chuunin vest.

How…DARE he become a chuunin.

It was bad enough that Shino was one, but for Neji to be one was like a slap across the face. I don't know why it bothered me so much, but it could have been because he was just standing there acting all cocky wearing his vest as if he NEEDED to wear it.

I couldn't help but grip the menu tighter and tighter as it began to fold and collapse under the pressure.

Why couldn't I be a chuunin? Everyone knew I was good enough.

"Sasuke, are you all right?" Sakura asked suddenly.

I wanted to fight Neji just to prove to everyone that I deserved a vest as well and should be awarded one, but he as well as the rest of his team took themselves to another table.

I put the folded menu down on the table and rose out of my seat.

"Sasuke, where are you going?" Sakura called as I hurried out of the restaurant.

I knew both she and Naruto were following me. But the last thing I wanted right now was to have Naruto and Sakura seeing me sulk.

I rounded the corner and immediately pushed open the door, entering into a building in which I didn't even bother checking to see what it held inside.

A flower shop.

The smell of flowers filled the air as I heard a voice call out, "Welcome!… Oh, hi Sasuke!"

Upon looking up, I saw Ino standing behind the counter.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

I didn't answer her and only turned away, pretending to be interested in some flowers. While the last thing I was interested in was flowers, I wasn't about to lead her into believing that I had come into the flower shop just to visit her and have her in my company.

"Are you looking for anything in particular?" she asked, suddenly very close.

"No, not really." I said, trying to make her go away as I moved across the store. WHY did I have to come in THIS store? Any other store would have been acceptable but it had to be in the one place where another obsessive girl was.

She continued to follow me around, pestering me in a way that she must have thought was subtle.

Finally, I turned around. "Ino," I said. "I can't find the type of flower I'm looking for. So I'm leaving."

I moved by her and towards the door.

"Sasuke, wait!" she called.

I put my hand on the door and stopped. I don't know why I waited, but I did. "Sasuke…tell me honestly." She said. "Do you love Sakura?"

I don't know why I had been expecting anything else. So I didn't answer and just pushed the door open, leaving before she could plead with me anymore. It had been a while since I had seen Ino but she really hadn't changed at all. And to think we used to be friends back in the academy. But that was…well, before Itachi killed my clan.

So that's how it is. Neji and Shino are chuunins and I'm stuck as a genin on the same team as Naruto and Sakura. What was to become of me? How would I EVER become strong enough to kill Itachi if they kept holding me back?

If Kakashi trained me better instead of wasting all his time on Naruto and Sakura then I'm sure I would be a much better ninja. That's the way it goes. It's everyone else's fault except mine.


	3. Akimichi Chouji: Relief

Akimichi Chouji; 1 Year Later

Age 13

-Relief-

Whew…oh boy. I had been out late last night.

Shikamaru was due to return home from his mission at six o'clock yesterday afternoon but he never got back. I was pretty worried about him so I hung around the gate. He never came. I hope he got back okay.

Finally, my father made me come back to the house. After all, I had training this morning.

Speaking of which…what time was it?

Oops, I'm late.

I got out of bed and hurried down the stairs.

"Look who's finally up!" said my dad.

"Dad, why didn't you wake me up?" I asked.

"You were out late last night." He replied as he handed me some breakfast.

"Do you know if Shikamaru got back?" I questioned.

"Chouji, try not to worry." Said my dad. "You're just like your mother. I'm sure he's FINE!"

FINE, he says! Then why is he so late?

I smiled just to make my dad happy. Then I grabbed as much as I could and threw it into a bag. I took as much as I could carry and hurried out the door. "See you later, dad!" I called. "If Shikamaru gets back, tell him I said hi!"

I didn't even wait for a response as I closed the door behind me.

I jogged for as long as my body would allow. But it wasn't really all that much, especially since I was carrying loads of breakfast with me.

Finally, I got to the meeting spot where Asuma and Ino were already waiting. They looked a little angry at me when I arrived but when I offered them some of my breakfast, they couldn't help but lighten up a bit.

"Why are you late?" Asuma asked.

"My dad let me sleep in because I was out late!" I answered. "Do you know if Shikamaru came back from his mission yet?"

"No, not yet." Asuma replied.

"Oh…okay." I said with a sigh.

"Can we start with the training?" Ino said impatiently.

Asuma began with a bit of conditioning. All I could think of was Shikamaru! Was he okay? How long until the Hokage would send out a search party for him? He went on a pretty hard mission with only one other jounin. I mean…what if he was hurt somewhere?

"CHOUJI!" yelled Asuma suddenly.

It made me jump.

"Yes?" I said, trying not to sound nervous.

"Stop letting your mind wander!" he scolded me.

"Okay…okay…" I said, feeling a little embarrassed. But Shikamaru was my very best friend and I was worried about him.

Maybe Asuma was just upset because neither Ino or I made it to the Chuunin Exam tournament that year. In fact, we didn't even make it to the preliminaries… someone had stolen our scroll in the Forest of Death and we didn't make it back to the tower in time.

Our entire team went to watch the tournament. The only people we knew that were in it were Lee, Neji and Shino and it's not like we actually KNOW them. I was surprised that Sasuke wasn't in it, but not nearly surprised as Ino was when she found out. I think she fainted. Nevertheless, she still states that she is the woman Sasuke will marry! Honestly, she's really too young to be thinking about MARRIAGE, in my opinion.

I know I must sound like an old man, but I guess it's just because love hasn't really hit me yet. Some day, far off in the future, I can see myself getting married to a woman I TRULY love, but in the meantime…

Where is Shikamaru?!

And I'm kind of hungry.

But more importantly…where is Shikamaru?

"Chouji, stop thinking about Shikamaru." Said Ino.

"What?" I said. "How did you know?!"

"I can tell!" said Ino. "You've been worrying about him ever since he left and your training has been getting really—" She went on, but I've learned to block out her nonsensical blather. That's what Shikamaru calls it anyway. "He's going to be fine!" I heard finally.

Ino acted as though she had inside information. EVERYONE was acting as though they had inside information but had anyone heard from Shikamaru? NO! And if they had, it was rather cruel that no one was sharing this contact they had with me!

"You don't KNOW that, Ino!!" I said, sounding more angry than I had originally meant to. I had WANTED to have a bit of an edge in my voice but I guess I had hyped myself up a little too much. And I could tell that Ino was a bit taken aback by my tone because she was looking at me with a slightly confused and slightly hurt expression.

"Now now, enough of this." Said Asuma, coming in between us.

"Asuma, YOU tell him." Said Ino.

I don't know how Ino was just going around acting as though Shikamaru's fate didn't matter to her in the least bit. I knew she had to be worried about him too, she just didn't want to admit it.

"Ino, you can't tell me that YOU'RE not worried about him too!" I said.

"I AM!" she said, though I didn't expect it. I had thought she would deny it until hell froze over but she proved me wrong! "But not to the unhealthy extent that you are!"

Suddenly, a jounin ninja dropped down from the trees. I didn't know who he was or why he was there, but I assumed he had a message from the Hokage because he immediately took Asuma aside out of earshot of Ino and me.

I couldn't help but start to bite my nails, something I always do when I get nervous. What if he had awful news that he found Shikamaru somewhere in a ditch and that…no! I can't think of that kind of stuff! I'm sure Shikamaru's all right because no one would ever be able to defeat him!

Just when I was running out of fingernails, the ninja finally left and Asuma turned to address us, passing along to message. He stood and waited for a moment and I was unable to read his expression. Wasn't he going to answer? Wasn't he going to tell us what the message was about? For all I knew, it had nothing to do with Shikamaru and I was just worrying myself over nothing!!

"What happened?" I asked finally when I could hold it in no more.

Asuma began to laugh.

That immediately relieved me. Shikamaru was okay.

"Shikamaru has returned from his mission!" Asuma announced. "He is unscathed and doing just fine!"

I finally remembered to take a breath and let out a sigh of relief. I looked at Ino and she looked a little annoyed, but relieved.

It had been almost three days since we had seen him last, and I'm sure he wanted to see us and catch up on the things he missed. And besides, I was curious of what his mission was for! "Let's go visit him!" I said.

"Didn't you hear Asuma?!" Ino said angrily "Shikamaru's FINE! We don't have to visit him!"

I just looked at her. So she finally gave in and we all went back to the village. I went right up to Shikamaru's door and knocked on it.

Shikamaru's mother was there in a matter of seconds.

"Shikamaru's in the backyard." She said before we even had to ask. It's like she already knew why we were there.

"Thank you." The three of us responded as we all went into the backyard.

"Shikamaru!!" I said, running over to him. "We're so relieved you're okay!"

"Oh, hey Chouji." Said Shikamaru.

"You ARE all right, aren't you, Shikamaru?" I double-checked.

"Of course I am." Shikamaru answered. "What could have possibly happened?"

"COUNTLESS things, Shikamaru!" I said. "ANYTHING could have happened! It was a dangerous mission!"

"What were you doing on your mission this time?" Ino asked.

"I can't share the details of this mission with a genin." Said Shikamaru. How strange. Usually he told us.

"Please, Shikamaru?" Ino pleaded.

"I can't share the details of this mission with a genin." He repeated.

Maybe this mission was a whole lot more dangerous and important than Ino and I could ever come to understand unless we were chuunins. I was ready to completely drop the matter but Ino continued persistently.

"At LEAST tell us why you were late!" she said.

"I can't share the details of this mission with a genin."

"Fine." Said Ino, finally calling it quits. "Well, I have to go to work anyway."

And that's when she left, leaving Shikamaru, Asuma and I there in Shikamaru's backyard with the opportunity to catch up on the three days we had missed!

"Are you glad to be back, Shikamaru?" I asked him.

"Yes." He answered. He didn't say any more than that.

"I'm glad to see you're all right." Said Asuma to Shikamaru. "But I can't hang around anymore. Chouji, you can have the rest of the day off."

With that, Asuma was gone.

Shikamaru let out a loud sigh.

"What's the matter, Shikamaru?" I asked.

He only shook his head in response.

We both looked at the clouds for a few minutes. I decided to try a go at his thinking thing a little while ago, and ever since I did, I feel as though I understand Shikamaru more!

Maybe he was thinking about the good old days when he, Ino and I would train all the time and go out to eat even more often! But he was a chuunin now and I'm sure he has the potential to become a jounin. Yeah, maybe he was thinking about that.

"Do you miss being a genin, Shikamaru?"

"Sometimes." He replied.

"Today?"

"No, not to today."

So something else had caused him to sigh like that.

"Did something go wrong on your mission?"

"You could say that."

What a broad answer! I knew he wasn't injured or anything or else he surely would have told me beforehand. Perhaps he had failed his mission and didn't get paid for it. Then again, that sort of stuff never really bothered Shikamaru. Well, the failing part bothered him but he was never in it for the money. I know Shikamaru and I KNOW he's in it for helping people!

Then Shikamaru did something I had never expected!

"What have you been up to, Chouji?"

"Me?" I said. So many things! I had to tell him so many things! But I didn't want to bore him with extensive details or talking about something silly that didn't matter, especially compared to his important life that he was leading as a chuunin!

Then again, he DID ask me so that at least meant he was interested in my life when he wasn't there.

Or maybe he was just trying to talk about something else because he didn't want to talk about himself anymore.

No matter what I said at that point, I would have been babbling.

"Oh, Shikamaru." I said finally. "Nothing really at all. It's not interesting around here when you're away on missions."

Shikamaru sat up from his lying down position and looked at me questioningly. I guess he expected me to babble on about nothingness as usual.

"That's nice." He said, lying back down.

I felt satisfied that I hadn't irritated Shikamaru to the point in which he thought up an excuse to leave. He looked back up at the clouds and didn't say anything more.

"Shikamaru, when is your next mission?" I asked.

"I'm not sure." Shikamaru answered after a moment's pause. "Within the week."

Within the week?? He just got back!! "Already?" I said, trying not to sound outraged even though I was.

"Yup." He answered.

"Wow, Shikamaru." I said. "Being a chuunin must be really tough."

Shikamaru didn't reply for a good while. I think he was captivated by the clouds and was waiting for the right answer.

"Yeah, Chouji." He said finally. "It really is."


	4. Rock Lee: Run to Reflect

Rock Lee; 1 Year Later

Age 14

-Run to Reflect-

I couldn't sleep!! I couldn't sleep!! I was so excited to get my chuunin vest.

I don't think I did sleep last night.

We had the Chuunin Exam Tournament a few days ago! I made it to the tournament and won one round. Then Neji beat me in the semi-finals, but I think I did well in both rounds I participated in! I'm pretty confident that I'll get my chuunin vest.

Then again, I did lose a lot of time last year when I was injured after the first Chuunin exam. I have to admit I was a little paranoid this year, but that Gaara of the Sand kid wasn't there so I had no reason to be afraid.

If they did, in fact, select me to become a chuunin, they would be sending one of the Hokage's right hand men to my door any minute now to tell me that the Hokage wished to speak with me.

I stared at the door.

Time was slowly ticking by.

And still, no ninja appeared at my door.

I figured that maybe they were collecting up everyone else first.

All of a sudden, I looked at the clock to see that it was one o'clock. I gasped and realized that Gai had requested we meet him at this exact time. How could I have been so careless as to forget about training?!

Well, I hadn't forgotten about training, I was just a little preoccupied with the Chuunin Exam. But what if the ninja came to my door while I wasn't here?! He would think I was unreliable and then never give me my chuunin vest and then I'd be a genin forever!! But I have to prove to the world that I can become a good ninja even if I can only use taijutsu!!

"FIVE MORE MINUTES!!!" I yelled.

I waited five more minutes.

"If he doesn't come in five MORE minutes then I'll run ten laps around Konoha after meeting with Gai!!" I declared. I started punching the air. What if he was looking in the window and just making sure I was a good ninja?

AHHHHH!!! IT'S ONE THIRTY!!! I'M SO LATE!!!

I flung the door open, hoping to see a ninja there but there was none to be found. I sprinted as fast as I could to where Gai requested to have us meet.

"LEE!!!" Gai yelled. "YOU'RE LATE!!!"

Gai's so fast that he was able to wind up and punch me before I even realized I had arrived.

Although, I DID deserve it.

"Gai!" I said. "I'm sorry I'm late!! I was just making sure that a jounin wasn't coming to my door to tell me I had passed the chuunin exam!"

The tears in Gai's eyes suggested that I hadn't passed. I couldn't help but accept my fate of shedding tears as well. "Oh Lee!" said Gai.

"Gai!!" I yelled.

He outstretched his loving arms to console me. I leapt into them for comfort.

"Gai, are you going to tell him?" Tenten said suddenly.

I looked up from Gai's tear stained shoulder.

"Tell me what?" I asked as Gai finally let go of me. We both stood up and straightened out our extremely youthful attire.

"Lee, I don't know how to break it to you…" Gai started.

"What is it, Gai?" I asked.

"There's no EASY way to say this…"

"What?"

"This isn't something to take lightly!"

"What?"

"RRG!" Tenten yelled. "Lee, NEJI'S a chuunin now!"

I gasped. Part of me wanted to be happy for him, but part of me was insanely jealous. Though, I wasn't about to show that.

"That's why he's not here today, Lee!" said Gai. "For he is not required to train with us now that he is a chuunin!"

"Oh Gai!!" I cried. I could feel the tears flowing freely from my eyes again. Maybe hard work COULDN'T surpass genius ability after all! "Gai, I must run ten laps around Konoha!"

"Why?" said Tenten.

"Because I promised myself that if I didn't pass the chuunin exam then I would do so." I answered.

"Good idea!" said Gai. "I think we ALL shall do it!"

"What?" said Tenten, looking appalled.

"TEN LAPS!!" yelled Gai.

"If I can't do ten laps, I'll do five hundred push-ups!!" I announced as I took off running.

Running was a good way to reflect. I thought about Sakura, the chuunin exam, Sakura, the fact that Neji wouldn't be training with us anymore, Sakura, Gai's inspirational speeches and, last but not least, Sakura.

Tenten looked grouchy the entire time we were running. It was strange though! I thought she LIKED to run! After all, she did it every morning!

The laps really go by quickly if you let your mind wander. And, by the time lunch rolled around, we were all done.

"Team!" said Gai. "Today has been an emotional day for all of you!"

His eyes were watering! Oh Gai!!

"Therefore," he went on. "I will allow you to take the rest of the day off to do anything you wish! Please have a good day!"

With that, Gai was gone.

Tenten and I looked at each other for a moment.

Suddenly, I let my mind wander again.

I thought about Neji and how he was a chuunin and how he wasn't training with us anymore.

Tenten was sighing a little bit and looking around in attempt to keep herself occupied. She was waiting for me to say something, but I was still thinking about stuff.

Like Neji.

He probably missed us.

Then it occurred to me! Neji is most likely sitting at home with a brand new chuunin vest and no one to show it to. I bet he wanted us to come over and see it so he could show it off to us! And, as painful as it would be for me to face him and his chuunin vest, it's about time I got a grip on reality and realized the truth!

"Hey!" I said to Tenten just as she turned to leave. "Let's go visit Neji and congratulate him!"

"I already saw him this morning." Tenten said.

"Neat!!" I commented. "Now you can see him TWICE! Let's go!"

"Lee, I don't really want to visit Neji." Tenten sighed. "He was kind of jerk this morning so I'd rather do something else."

"Like what?" I asked.

I began to brainstorm to myself. I really did want to see Neji to make sure everything I had heard was true. I knew people weren't trying to fool me or anything, but I still wanted to SEE the chuunin vest.

I waited for Tenten to say something, but she looked like she was waiting for me to say something.

"What do YOU want to do?" I said to Tenten.

"I don't know…" she said vaguely.

"Well, I'M going to go over to congratulate Neji." I said in a finalized tone. "I would like it if you came, but you don't HAVE to!" I started my journey towards Neji's house, and Tenten, unsurprisingly enough, followed me.

I went up to the front door.

And then we both looked at each other.

"So ring the doorbell." Tenten said.

"You're closer." I said.

The Hyuugas didn't really like us all that much. I don't know if it's because they don't like our personalities or if it's just because we're not Hyuugas, but whatever it was, they always seemed so uptight and irritated whenever we were around.

Maybe the Hyuugas are ALWAYS like that.

After all, Neji's always like that…but I thought he was a special case because of all the messed up things that happened to him.

So, I realized that it was my duty as a man to accept the responsibility of angering the entire household for ringing the door as a non-Hyuuga.

We both waited awkwardly on the front steps until, suddenly, the door opened. The man I recognized as Neji's uncle was there.

"Um…hi…" Tenten said. "Is…Neji home?"

He didn't really answer. He only shut the door on our faces.

Tenten and I looked at each other.

"That was rude." Tenten said.

"Maybe he's not home…" I tried to reason.

Tenten shrugged and the two of us turned to leave. Suddenly, the door opened again and Neji was standing there, wearing his chuunin vest. He also looked kind of annoyed, but I guess that's how he always looks.

"Neji!" I exclaimed. "I came over to congratulate you!! And Tenten came too!"

"I figured so much." Neji said.

"NOW we're going to take you out to eat!!" I said, the idea popping into my head just then and there. We would be seeing less of Neji now that he was a chuunin so we should get in some quality time.

"What?" said Tenten.

"Fine." Said Neji, shutting the door behind him.

I think both Tenten and I were surprised to hear him agree so quickly. That was so unlike him! Perhaps he had the same trail of thought as we did. Or… as _I _did.

"I'm glad at least ONE of us became a chuunin!" I said, trying to create small talk.

It didn't really work because neither of them responded.

"NEXT year Tenten and I will be chuunins!" I tried again.

Once again, no response.

I figured I had to direct a question towards someone. "Will you come and watch us in the chuunin exam next time, Neji?" I said.

Yet…still, I got no response.

I gave a heavy sigh as we entered the restaurant.

But my spirits were lifted when I saw Sakura over at a table. "Sakura!!" I said excitedly, running over to her. "It is so nice to see you! How are you? Are you well? It's been a long time since we last met! Days, I think!"

"Lee…please…" Sakura said.

"Will you do me the honor of dining with my team and I?" I requested.

"Lee!" said Tenten. "It's a TEAM thing! And THEY'RE obviously doing a team thing too!"

I looked around the table to see that Naruto and Sasuke were there too. But Sasuke looked like he'd rather be anywhere but there because he was crumpling his menu up with a murderous look in his eyes.

"Sasuke, are you all right?" Sakura asked, completely ignoring me.

"Lee, come on." Tenten pleaded, pulling me away from the table.

We sat down at another table.

"What should we order?" I said, trying to sound happy as the three of us each picked up our menus. "Wow, the food smells good today! I can't wait to eat something since I'm quite hungry!"

"One thing I will certainly not miss is your mouth constantly flapping." Neji said.

Yeah, it hurt. When he says stuff like that, it always hurts. It hurts when ANYONE says stuff like that.

I wasn't too motivated to say anything else.

The only other words that were uttered the table was when we were ordering our food, but we never spoke again until it was time to leave. Even though Neji wasn't really going anywhere and there was still the chance of me seeing him any time I liked, it felt like he was going away on a long trip and I felt very sad even though he was mean to me.

"Good bye, Neji!" I said. "Feel free to stop by any time we're training!!"

Neji only looked at me, so I figured _I _had to initiate the farewell hug!! I did, and he didn't move at all the entire time.

When I finally let go of him, Neji looked as though I hadn't even gone near him.

"Lee." He said.

"Yes, Neji?" I said.

"Don't ever do that again." He replied.


	5. Hyuuga Hinata: Just For Shino

Hyuuga Hinata; 1 Year Later

Age 13

-Just For Shino-

The past year had been quite interesting. Last month we had another chuunin exam and Kurenai once again nominated us to participate. I was hesitant about doing so but I couldn't let Shino and Kiba down.

When Kurenai told us that Shino had passed the Chuunin exam and that he was going to be promoted a chuunin, I was very happy for him. We weren't allowed to tell him though, and keeping the secret was killing me. I wanted to congratulate him for doing so well. That's when Kiba suggested that we throw a party for him.

While I don't think Shino will be very enthusiastic about a surprise party, I didn't want to put Kiba or his idea down. I hastily agreed and Kurenai agreed as well with an indifferent shrug.

It's a wonder Shino didn't notice us on his way out from his house on his way to the Hokage's office to get promoted. He was probably too wrapped up in his thoughts concerning whether or not he received his promotion. I felt a little silly hiding behind the bush with Kiba and Kurenai, but if that's what it took…

Finally, when Shino was out of sight, Kiba beckoned for us to follow him to the front door.

"This is going to be great!!" Kiba said as he reached for the doorknob.

"Wait…" I said, and Kiba stopped immediately. I didn't think it was very nice for us to just barge in on the house. What if Shino's father was inside doing something that he would be embarrassed about if we just walked in on him? "Shouldn't we knock first?"

"Good idea, Hinata!" Kiba said with a slight laugh. Kiba's so nice to me, but sometimes I don't know if he thinks before he does things. I never hold it against him. In fact, it's kind of funny and makes me laugh sometimes.

Kurenai stood idly by, probably assuming we'd solve the whole issue of whether to knock or not on our own. I was very lucky to get a teacher like Kurenai since she cared for me… all three of us. She was very kind to us and trained our abilities individually. I can see why it would be a hard job for her since we all come from very unique clans that require certain attention in different fields, but somehow she's managed. I was hoping to make her and everyone else proud by at least making it to the tournament, but there's always next time I suppose.

We waited for quite a while but no one answered the door.

Akamaru barked something. "I know." Kiba said in response to Akamaru. "But he's not coming to the door."

"What did Akamaru say?" Kurenai asked.

"He said someone's inside." Kiba answered.

I must admit I was a little surprised, maybe even a little disturbed, at the fact that Kiba can interact so freely with his dog. The mere thought of being able to connect with Akamaru so easily still makes me wonder. But now we've all grown accustomed to it and even come to accept Akamaru as apart of our team.

"I don't think anyone would mind if we just let ourselves in…" Kiba said slowly. "We have good intentions!"

Kiba was right. I don't know if Shino would be bothered or not, but we couldn't just stand out here for very much longer. There had to have been a good reason as to why Shino's dad was not coming to the door to let us in. It was still early. Perhaps he was still sleeping.

So we went in and began setting up.

I stood up on top of a chair and quietly tried to tape some yellow streamers across the wall. Everything had to be done quickly because Shino would be returning home any minute, but also carefully because this was a very special and important event for Shino. But it also had to be done quietly because I was pretty sure that Shino's dad was around…

Suddenly, I heard the sound of a balloon popping. I almost fell off the chair, I was so surprised! I looked at Kiba who was holding a broken balloon and looking as though he thought it was funny, but I suddenly caught someone looming over us out of the corner of my eye. Once again, I was so frightened and so surprised that I thought I would fall off the chair.

"Mr. Aburame!" said Kurenai. I gave a sigh with relief as she went over to explain everything to him. He didn't really object to what we were doing so I finished taping up the streamers. I hopped off the chair and looked in the bag to see a stack of party hats.

I thought those would be fun, but then I noticed that they said Happy Birthday on them. I pondered over that for a moment, and then decided to ask Kiba since this had all been his idea.

"Should we wear these party hats?" I asked.

"Of course!" Kiba said as if I was silly. "That's why we got them!"

Apparently he didn't notice the fact that they said Happy Birthday. "But they say 'Happy Birthday' on them…" I pointed out.

"Well… they do…" he said, looking at the hats. "But Shino's not going to notice! I'LL make sure he wears one." Before I could respond, Kiba suddenly ran over to the window and looked out it. Then he turned around back to us. "Guys, Shino is coming!" he said in a hushed voice.

"That was quick." Said Kurenai. "Hide!"

We all got into our hiding place except for Shino's dad. I wasn't going to say anything, but no one else did either. So Shino opened the door, Chuunin vest in hand, and we all jumped out.

"SURPRISE!!" we shouted.

"Congratulations on becoming a Chuunin, Shino!" Kurenai said immediately.

"We threw a surprise party for you!" Kiba said as he put a hat on Shino.

I had to say something too, but they had kind of already taken what I wanted to say. So I quickly thought of something else. "Do you feel any different?" I asked.

"From what?" Shino said.

"From when you were a genin." I replied.

"Oh. No."

"They were here when I woke up." Said Shino's dad.

That made me feel like we were unwelcome. It made me feel uncomfortable. But Kiba and Kurenai didn't seem to mind. Most importantly of all, Shino didn't appear to mind either so I wasn't going to let it bother me either.

"So what else do we have planned for today?" Kurenai asked.

"I figured we call all just have a pow-wow shindig and chill out!" said Kiba enthusiastically.

I looked at Shino. I never thought in a million years he'd go for something like that. But he didn't really say much…as usual.

"I'll leave you three to hang out by yourselves!" said Kurenai. "You don't need an old lady butting in on you! Come on, Mr. Aburame, let's give the kids some space!"

She pushed Shino's dad out of the house. I had to admire Kurenai's bravery to do something like that.

"What is a pow-wow shindig?" Shino said to Kiba after Kurenai and his dad had left.

"THIS is a pow-wow shindig." Said Kiba. "This wonderful surprise party that we planned for you."

Shino didn't say anything at first. "How come no one else is here?" he said.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"It's only the three of us." Shino said.

"FOUR!" said Kiba, pointing at Akamaru.

"Whatever." Said Shino.

"Well…we didn't know who else to invite…" I said nervously. I never imagined Shino would ever concern himself with something like how many people were attending his party.

"They're probably all at…" Shino began but then he trailed off. "No, never mind."

"What?" I asked.

"Neji's a chuunin too." Shino answered.

Kiba laughed out loud. "Yeah, like ANYONE would go to HIS surprise party!" he said. "I bet not even his own teammates did. Shino, doesn't it make you feel good to know you have pals like us?"

Shino didn't move.

I didn't really agree with Kiba. While I don't think Neji would have gotten many people at his party, I would think at least Lee and Tenten attended… if there even was one.

"Don't worry, Shino, we ALL know that it was just a weird fluke chance thing that Neji beat you!" said Kiba. "Same with you, Hinata! He must have cheated or something!"

"Wow, Kiba, that's so nice." I said even though I knew it was the opposite of the truth.

Kiba could try to state something as ridiculous as Neji beating me was only a fluke, but everyone knew he beat me with great ease. I wasn't in denial. I wondered if Shino believed that it was a fluke Neji beat him. I suppose it doesn't matter though, since they're both chuunins.

"It doesn't matter that he beat me." Shino said. "We're both chuunins."

"I was just thinking that!" I exclaimed…but Shino didn't look like he cared, so I cleared my throat hesitantly.

"So what should we do?!" Kiba said randomly. He had probably let his mind wander and was confused as to what we were talking about. Kiba does that more often than he should, because then he just ends up sporadically changing the subject. It doesn't annoy me since he usually does it when something embarrassing or awkward is going on.

"I'll walk you both home." Shino said.

"HOME?!" Kiba demanded. I expressed my surprise as well, but not quite as in an animated fashion as Kiba.

"Yeah." Said Shino. "We could have our pow-wow shindig on the way back to your houses."

"Oh Shino." Said Kiba with a slight tone of laughter in his voice. "You saying 'pow-wow shindig' has just made my day."

Shino didn't look too happy at that comment as Kiba did. I have to admit, though, it was pretty funny and couldn't help but laugh… but just a little bit. I didn't want to look like I was taking a side on the matter. Even though there wasn't really much of a side to take.

Since it WAS Shino's party, we had to do what he wanted to do. And, since he wanted to walk us home and have his pow-wow shindig like that, then who were we to not allow him to?

Naturally the two guys took me to my house first. I hoped Neji wouldn't be home. Not for any particular reason… mostly because he just scares me out of my mind and it's always better for him not to be there as opposed to being there.

"Bye guys!" I said to them. "I'll see you tomorrow!"

"Bye Hinata!" Kiba said, waving. Shino only nodded. I went inside the house and closed the door behind me. I had hardly shut the door and turned around to see Hanabi standing there.

"Oh, hi Hanabi!" I said. "You scared me!"

"Dad wants to talk to you." Hanabi said.

"Oh, okay." I said. I quickly walked past her and hurried off to my dad's room where he usually stayed. I knocked on the door and heard my father beckoning for me to come in. Slowly, I opened the door. "Father, you wanted to see me?" I asked.

"Yes, I have something to speak with you about." He said. "Close the door behind you."

I stepped inside and closed the door.

"Yes?" I said.

"You probably already know this, but your cousin Neji is a chuunin now." He said.

"Yes, I heard." I replied.

My father didn't say anything for a long time.

"I want you to become a chuunin as well." He said finally.

"I'll try." I said.

"Hinata, we can't have a member of the Branch House surpassing our Main House heirs so easily and quickly." My father went on. "I expect that you will enter the next chuunin exam and succeed."

"I will." I said.

I knew I couldn't make a promise like that, but I would definitely try. Not because I was afraid that Neji was going to surpass me… since he kinda already did that, but so my father wouldn't be disappointed in me.

"That's all." He said.

"Okay." I said, taking a deep breath as I left the room.

Hanabi was there.

"Did he tell you to get stronger than Neji?" she asked me.

I nodded.

"He told me that too." She said with a smile.


	6. Uzumaki Naruto: Explain

Uzumaki Naruto; 1 Year Later

Age 13

-Explain-

I'm Uzumaki Naruto, a genin (but not for long!) Soon to be HOKAGE!!

I guess the first step to becoming the Hokage is passing the chuunin exam. Next time, I swear! It'll be next time!

I always wake up early these days. I was tired of everyone always calling me someone who's late for everything. Besides, I HAVE to wake up early because Kakashi schedules his training so early in the morning even though he doesn't show up on time!

I grabbed some extra cash on the way out. I usually stop at my favorite ramen place on my way to training to get some breakfast. A lot of people say that ramen isn't for breakfast, but if I had it MY way, everyone would eat ramen all day long!

"ONE ramen please!" I said, slamming the exact change down on the table.

"Coming right up." Said the man behind the counter.

It's strange, even though I've come here almost every day for as long as I can remember, I still don't know that guy's name.

As I ate, all I could think of was the chuunin exam. We made a bunch of really stupid mistakes that landed us unable to compete in the tournament. Me, Sakura and that stupid Sasuke all lost to someone in just the preliminaries. I was glad as long as Sasuke didn't make it. Because if he had made it and I hadn't, I'd never hear the end of it!

Stupid Sasuke had gotten even more fanatical lately. He'd kind of turned into a surrogate teacher and manages to bark orders at Sakura and I whenever Kakashi's back is turned. I'm learning to hate him even more!

As for Sakura…wow. She looks more like a model than a ninja! She becomes more and more beautiful every day! Unfortunately, I know it's all for that stupid Sasuke but I ALSO know that someday she'll realize that Sasuke doesn't give a flying cactus about her and then she'll see that I'VE liked her this entire time!

I finished up my ramen and said goodbye to the man whose name I did not know and then hurried off to the bridge. I was a little behind schedule, but I wasn't worried. I knew Kakashi wouldn't be there waiting.

I saw Sakura sitting on the bridge reading. She certainly read a lot lately, but every day her greeting was the same. I'd say hi to her and she'd throw some sort of insult at me for no good reason. Then, when I try to create small talk, she'd turn me away as if I was saying something COMPLETELY unreasonable!

She's just playing hard to get and that's why I like her so much!

She looked up from her book with a smile on her face but then it contorted into a frown.

"Good morning, Sakura!" I called.

"Naruto, I'm TRYING to read." she said. "But your loud and annoying voice is distracting me."

She had been reading that same book with the blue cover for a long time. I think it was about time I found out what it was about. If I found out what it was, I could read it too and then she and I could have some common knowledge about something and we'd be able to talk about stuff. "What are you reading?" I asked her.

"None of your business!" Sakura said as she spun around and slammed her book down on the bridge.

Oh beautiful Sakura, if you only knew home much I loved you!

Sigh.

I'm tired of her being so interested in that stupid Sasuke!

Sigh.

Speaking of that stupid Sasuke, I heard his footsteps. I turned around and sure enough, there he was.

Sakura got her hopes up as usual. "Good morning, Sasuke!"

As usual, Sasuke didn't say anything to her. I always felt so bad for Sakura, especially when she got depressed after Sasuke didn't notice her new haircut or new clothes.

I figured it was my place to do something for Sakura to get back at that stupid Sasuke.

"Sasuke, you are LATE!!" I said, pointing at him to make sure he understood the full extent of my anger. "I hope you're not going to make a habit of this!!"

Before stupid Sasuke could even say anything to that, Kakashi suddenly appeared with an excuse as usual.

"Don't bother!!" Sakura and I yelled.

"Well it's official." Kakashi went on. "Gai, Asuma AND Kurenai all have a chuunin on their team and I do not."

"That's not nice!" Sakura said.

"Next time," Kakashi continued. "I hope that at least one of you will make it to the tournament. I think it's imperative that we go over all the things that you need to improve on."

Kakashi explained things thoroughly, but it didn't look like either Sakura OR stupid Sasuke were paying attention. Which is too bad for them, because that just means that I'll become the best ninja in the group and go on to become the Hokage.

"We're going to do a lot of individual training today." Kakashi continued. "It will be strenuous work, but I feel as though you three will—"

He kind of just stopped.

I looked at Kakashi, then Sasuke, then Sakura and then Kakashi again. They all seemed to be captivated by Kakashi's sudden silence. I, for one, was not patient enough to stand there and wait for him to finally get around to finishing his sentence.

"Will…" I led.

"Can we get a rain check on this?" Kakashi said, almost as if he was waiting for us to say something so he could make up an absurd excuse.

"What?" the three of us said in unison.

"I have to go."

With that, he disappeared.

"WHAT was that?" Stupid Sasuke said in the most offended tone I have ever heard in my entire life.

"Obviously he was preoccupied by something!" said Sakura. "So let's all go out to lunch! It'll be fun!"

Wow! Sakura was asking me out to lunch?!

"Yeah!" I quickly agreed. There was no way I'd miss THAT opportunity!

"Um…Naruto." Said Sakura. "YOU'RE not invited."

"What?!" I demanded. "You said ALL!!"

"But when I say ALL, I actually mean just me and Sasuke."

"You implied that you were inviting me too!!"

"Well, then that was an accident. I didn't mean to imply that I was inviting you as well!"

Obviously Sakura was just shy about asking me out. She realized that it had sounded like she asked me out! And, when in reality, she just wanted me to ask HER out!

Just when I was about to ask her out in order to satisfy her complicated feminine needs, Sasuke butted in.

"Sure." He said.

Sure WHAT?

"Really?!" Sakura said, turning to stupid Sasuke.

Sasuke didn't reply to Sakura, but all seemed to be forgotten because the three of us started on our way to a restaurant. I wanted to go to the Ramen place, but Sakura insisted on going someplace where we could sit down at a table.

Oh well.

At least we went to a cool restaurant with a grill in the middle of the table so we could grill the food at the table. That place is AWESOME!!

Unfortunately, no matter where I sat, I had to sit next to stupid Sasuke. Fortunately, no matter where I sat, I got to sit next to Sakura.

"Sasuke, this is a DREAM!" Sakura said as she moved her chair over to where Sasuke was sitting. I found myself alone on one half the table…closer to Sasuke than to Sakura. So, in order to remedy the situation, I moved myself over to where Sakura was.

In response, Sasuke stood up and moved his chair to the other side of the table.

Sakura moved her chair again.

I didn't move.

And we stayed like that.

"Hey, Sakura!" I said. "What are you going to order?"

"I don't know." Sakura answered, but I could tell she was watching stupid Sasuke out of the corner of her eye. "Probably nothing. I'm on a diet, you know."

"You don't need to be on a diet, Sakura!" I said. "You look just fine."

"What would YOU know, Naruto?" sighed Sakura.

I figured now was the best time to compliment her. Women always respond to compliments!

"Sakura, did you do something different to your hair this morning?" I asked. "Because it looks REALLY nice today!"

"Naruto, that is not going to work on me."

"I'm just trying to be nice!" I said…even though it was kind of a lie.

"I can tell you're just trying to win me over with compliments!" Sakura said.

I sighed. She was kind of hypocritical.

"Sakura—" I started, but I was interrupted because Lee had suddenly slid over on his knees.

"Sakura!!" Lee yelled almost at the same time as me. Then he babbled for quite a while before Sakura could finally get a word or two in.

"Lee…please…" she said.

"Will you do me the honor of dining with my team and I?" Lee requested.

Before I could yell at him and tell him that she was dining with ME, Tenten did. "Lee! It's a TEAM thing! And THEY'RE obviously doing a team thing too!"

Lee looked at the two of us obliviously. Lee and the rest of his team took off to sit somewhere else.

"Sasuke, are you all right?" Sakura asked him.

I then looked over at Sasuke who looked like he was ready to kill anything if anyone said something to him. I wondered what brought that on. He was perfectly fine a minute ago.

Um…when I said 'perfectly fine', that term is completely relative. He's usually really really angsty and unhappy, but he was ready to go on a warpath just then.

Without saying anything, he folded his menu and stood up. I watched him walk towards the door and didn't do anything to stop him since I wanted him to leave anyway. "Sasuke, where are you going?" Sakura called and started chasing after him.

I didn't want to be a loser sitting there by myself so I chased after Sakura.

"Sakura, wait up!!" I yelled, rounding the corner only to crash into her. "Hey, where'd that stupid Sasuke go?" I asked her.

"I don't know!" she said, sounding whiny.

"Oh well!" I said. "He was annoying anyway!"

"Naruto, you don't know ANYTHING!" she yelled at me.

She started walking away.

I chased after her.

"What do you mean?" I asked. "Explain it to me!"

"I don't owe you an explanation." Sakura said, pointing her nose up in the air.

"Sakura, you're acting like it's MY fault that Sasuke suddenly left for no reason!"

Sakura stopped walking.

"Naruto…you just don't get it." she said. "You are talking to the future Mrs. Uchiha Sasuke here! If I am going to be the one who marries Sasuke then I can't have him just getting up and leaving in the middle of dinner!"

"Technically, we hadn't started yet." I pointed out.

"You know what I mean!" Sakura yelled.

I didn't think Sakura was really at that point in her life in which she should be thinking about being the future Mrs. Anybody. I mean, I really liked Sakura but I never looked at her thinking that I was going to marry her. Maybe I was just clueless and everyone my age already knew who they were going to marry.

"I'm going to go and find Sasuke!" she said. "And don't bother trying to stop me or follow me!!" I didn't stop her as she stormed off.

Then, I looked to my right inside the flower shop to see Sasuke in there, looking around as Ino followed him around.

I looked back at Sakura to see she was still as angry as ever and getting further away.

"Hey Sakura!" I called after her.

"What?!" Sakura said angrily, turning around.

I looked back in the flower shop briefly.

"See you tomorrow!" I said.


	7. Yamanaka Ino: Do You Love Me?

Yamanaka Ino; 1 Year Later

Age 13

-Do You Love Me?-

Sure, we were ALL worried when Shikamaru didn't return from his mission at the appointed time. But I wasn't about to lose sleep over it or let it hinder my training performance. After failing so miserably in the chuunin exam, I was more pumped than ever to become a great ninja!

No one was going to ruin it for me! Not Asuma! Not Chouji! Not even Shikamaru could POSSIBLY keep me from attaining the ultimate ninjaness!

I know now that it's not hair, looks or brains that Sasuke is attracted to. He is looking for a woman who can be his equal, or even better him, in a true ninja battle. I've cut my hair extra short and worked out more than ever. You could even go as far as to say that I've gone hardcore tomboy… I guess that might be true.

I've become even more distant from Sakura. Her interest in becoming a ninja seems to be dwindling as she focuses her energy more than ever on her looks. I don't mind. Less competition for me.

I was determined to get Sasuke to notice me. It didn't matter who I had to stomp on to make that happen, but he was going to fall in love with me and eventually marry me. We were going to live in one house together and I will help him revive the clan!!

But…uh…ANYWAY…

For the next chuunin exam, I hope to pass with Sasuke. That was going to take a lot of work so that meant waking up early, always being on time for training and working hard like the chuunin exam was tomorrow!

I got up an hour early and did a little extra training before heading out to where I was to meet Asuma and Chouji.

"Hey Asuma!" I said. "Any word on Shikamaru?"

"No, not yet." Asuma answered. "But I'm sure he's fine."

"Yeah." I agreed. "I mean, what's going to happen?"

Shikamaru and his father went on a mission together. I'm not allowed to know the details of the mission since I'm only a genin, but all I heard was that it was dangerous. I'm not entirely sure I believe it though, because if it was really all that dangerous, the Hokage would have sent more than just two incompetent Naras.

"Hey, could we get started?" I asked.

"No, not until Chouji gets here." Sighed Asuma, looking at his watch.

"Could we just start now and have him join in later?" I requested.

"No." Asuma said, not taking his eyes off his watch.

It wasn't like Chouji to be so late. So, while Asuma stood there staring at his watch and not moving at all, I began my training. I kicked the pole, punched it and did a bit of conditioning.

Finally, Chouji arrived. His arms were full with food and it was hard to be angry at him since he graciously offered it to us.

"Why are you late?" Asuma asked Chouji.

"My dad let me sleep in because I was out late!" Chouji answered. "Do you know if Shikamaru came back from his mission yet?"

"No, not yet." Asuma replied.

"Oh…okay." Chouji said.

I had heard enough of this conversation. I knew that if I didn't say anything, Asuma and Chouji would fret and worry about Shikamaru all day long and waste precious daylight. "Can we start with the training?" I asked, trying not to sound TOO impatient.

We started with some conditioning. I could tell Chouji's mind was wandering because he was messing up even the simplest of tasks. When we practiced shuriken throwing, he couldn't hit a single target. Just when I was about to say something, Asuma lost his temper.

"CHOUJI!"

"Yes?" Chouji said.

"Stop letting your mind wander!" Asuma took the words right out of my mouth.

"Okay…okay…"

The training continued. We focused a lot of time on shuriken throwing. I could tell that Asuma was also concerned about Shikamaru since we didn't normally do this much standing around throwing things. I was a little irritated that we weren't moving forward.

I looked over at Chouji who had completely stopped his shuriken throwing and was only staring at one of his ninja stars. He KNEW he was thinking about Shikamaru. Why is everyone so concerned about Shikamaru? He's going to be FINE!

"Chouji, stop thinking about Shikamaru." I said.

"What?" Chouji said, jerking back into reality. "How did you know?!"

"I can tell!" I said. "You've been worrying about him ever since he left and your training has been getting really unfocused! Now, normally I wouldn't care at all but it's starting to hinder MY training ability so I DEMAND that you try harder and pay attention to what we're doing! And you can stop worrying about Shikamaru! He's going to be fine!"

"You don't KNOW that, Ino!!" said Chouji, sounding slightly angry.

"Now now, enough of this." Said Asuma, coming in between us. It's not like I had any intentions to maul Chouji so there was no reason for him to come in between us like that but I guess Asuma has to feel as though he actually does something every once and a while.

"Asuma, YOU tell him." I pleaded.

"Ino, you can't tell me that YOU'RE not worried about him too!" said Chouji.

"I AM!" I confessed, entirely by accident. "But not to the unhealthy extent that you are!"

Suddenly, a jounin ninja dropped down from the trees. I have to admit I was surprised since I didn't sense his presence prior to when he showed himself, but I suppose that's why he's a jounin and I'm a genin.

"Asuma," he said, pulling Asuma aside. He and Asuma had a short conference. I looked at Chouji who was biting his fingernails.

Now I was suddenly nervous too. What if something HAD happened to Shikamaru and it was that ninja's job to break the news to Asuma. I felt really really bad that I had yelled at Chouji and that I hadn't worried about Shikamaru.

After what seemed like forever, the ninja finally left and Asuma turned back to us.

"What happened?" Chouji asked frantically.

Asuma began to laugh. Obviously nothing bad had happened to Shikamaru.

"Shikamaru has returned from his mission!" Asuma announced. "He is unscathed and doing just fine!"

Chouji let out a sigh of relief, but I was angry at everyone for making me worry and regret so much. "Let's go visit him!" said Chouji.

"Didn't you hear Asuma?!" I demanded. "Shikamaru's FINE! We don't have to visit him!"

Chouji only looked at me blankly.

I knew we'd never get on with training unless we visited Shikamaru. So I gave up and gave in. I had to go and work in the flower shop today so I'd need to return back to the village soon ANYWAY.

It's not like Asuma was in a hurry to disagree with Chouji either! We all went back to the village and straight to Shikamaru's house.

Chouji had a skip in his step. I could tell he was relieved that Shikamaru was back and couldn't wait to hear the details of the mission… even though technically, we're not supposed to know about them since we're only genins. But we could usually harass the specifics out of Shikamaru.

Chouji knocked on the door and Shikamaru's mom answered it.

"Shikamaru's in the backyard." She said, sounding pleasant.

"Thank you." The three of us responded as we all went into the backyard.

"Shikamaru!!" Chouji exclaimed. Shikamaru was lying on the lawn, looking up at the sky absentmindedly as if he had nothing else to do. Why am I even surprised? That's what he's always doing! "We're so relieved you're okay!"

Chouji ran over and engaged himself in an enthralling conversation with Shikamaru. I really didn't care all THAT much. I mostly just wanted to hear what the mission was all about.

"What were you doing on your mission this time?" I asked.

"I can't share the details of this mission with a genin." Said Shikamaru in such a way that it sounded almost like one word. He's said that phrase so many times that it's pretty much second nature.

"Please, Shikamaru?" I pleaded.

"I can't share the details of this mission with a genin." He repeated.

He was being tough today. Usually, he would at least break eye contact to show that he was close to faltering. He's too lazy to keep secrets. He's too lazy for pretty much anything, as a matter of fact.

"At LEAST tell us why you were late!" I said.

"I can't share the details of this mission with a genin."

"Fine." I said, getting a bit offended. "Well, I have to go to work anyway."

He probably just got lost and didn't want to admit it. That would definitely be like Shikamaru.

So I left Shikamaru, Asuma and Chouji there. I knew they didn't want me to hang out with them anyway.

It didn't bother me that Asuma liked the boys better than me. I didn't really care… as long as I got trained. I knew I would become a chuunin soon so there was no reason to worry about being taught under Asuma for very much longer.

I looked at my watch and realized that I was a little behind schedule.

I picked up my apron on the way over, which only made me even later. When I finally got there, my mother looked pretty angry. Just as the customer left, she looked at me.

"Ino, you are fifteen minutes late!" she said.

"Mom, I went training this morning." I said. "But Chouji was late and Asuma wouldn't start until Chouji got there! So we started late!"

"You could have left early." She said crossly.

"Yeah!" I said. "But you know how Shikamaru's been away on a mission for a few days? Well, he came back today and Asuma and Chouji wanted to go over and welcome him back so we had to do that!"

"Ino, enough with your excuses." My mom sighed.

She took off her apron and went towards the door to leave.

At least she didn't comment about liking my hair long. I think that annoys me more than her yelling at me for being late.

"Oh and Ino…" she said, turning around.

Here it comes.

"How about you grow your hair out?" she said. "It looked so pretty when it was long."

"Mom, it got in the way!" I said.

"I'm JUST saying!" she said as she left.

She was always like that. I think she liked me a lot better before I got serious about becoming a good ninja. She and I used to shop and do our hair a lot but now I train all the time. She really has no idea what it's like for me! It's impossible for me to get anything serious done with her pestering me all the time AND making me come in and work at the shop.

I started practicing a little bit, when I heard the bells that signaled someone entered the shop.

"Welcome!" I said instinctively before I even checked to see who it was.

It was Sasuke!

"Oh, hi Sasuke!" I said dumbly. I thought it was really strange that Sasuke was in the flower shop. He had never come in before. "What are you doing here?"

Sasuke didn't answer. He only looked at the flowers.

I knew he wasn't there for the flowers.

I went over to where he was.

"Are you looking for anything in particular?" I asked him, hoping to start a conversation.

"No, not really."

"Are you sure?" I said, continuing to follow him. But he replied with only one word answers as I tried to get some specifics about why he was there.

"Ino," he said in a final tone. "I can't find the type of flower I'm looking for. So I'm leaving."

He went to the door.

Why HAD he come in, then? It wasn't just to see me, that much was obvious. He was running off now, probably to meet up with Sakura.

"Sasuke, wait!" I called.

He stopped.

"Sasuke…tell me honestly. Do you love Sakura?"

He left without answering.

WHY did I ask that? It just came out of my mouth when I wasn't paying attention. I felt so stupid. I had probably just ruined all my chances of ever becoming the woman Sasuke would marry.


	8. Hyuuga Neji: A Team of One

Hyuuga Neji; 1 Year Later

Age 14

-A Team of One-

Yes, I did pull my team through the Chuunin Exam, but that was expected. I, once again, got an easy pass through the preliminaries but I likely would have beaten anyone I went up against. Hinata is an easy opponent so I don't know why she bothers continuing attempting to become a ninja.

And, yes, I went on to the tournament. I beat Aburame Shino, the one who beat Uchiha Sasuke. Although I have yet to actually fight the Uchiha, by desire to do so is slowly diminishing, especially after witnessing his humiliating defeat.

And finally, yes. I did win the tournament. I was sure that I would be promoted to the rank of chuunin so the arrival of the Hokage's messenger ninjas did not surprise me. They told me the Hokage wished to speak with me, as if I would not suspect that I was to be promoted.

I began my walk to the Hokage's office when I spotted Tenten jogging. She had done a poor job in the preliminaries and allowed herself to be eliminated easily. But perhaps I had been expecting too much out of her. Just because she was put on the same team as me and trains on the same team as me, does not mean she will ever rise to my level, no matter how much pressure she is put under.

"Where are you going?" she asked me. "Are you getting promoted?"

She had absolutely no right to such information, but I wasn't going to keep I from her. Not because I felt she deserved to know where I was going and whether or not I was being promoted, but just because I knew she would pester me if I did not respond.

"The Hokage wanted to see me." I replied. "It could have nothing to do with promotion." Even though I knew for certain it was, I chose to say that anyway.

"You want me to come along?" she said.

I shrugged. "Whatever." I replied. I couldn't care less whether or not she went along with me. And if she wanted to waste her morning then who am I to stop her?

Lee had also made it to the tournament. I got the feeling that he wasn't going to be promoted though. I only won one match before he was knocked out by none other than myself. Did I feel bad about eliminating Lee from the tournament? Not at all. It was just like another one of my easy victories over Lee, except with an entire village watching.

When we reached the office, I did not feel comfortable with Tenten coming inside with me as if she was an escort.

"You can wait outside while I go and see what the Hokage wants." I said. She nodded and stayed as I went inside. There were only one other person standing there, Aburame Shino, and I figured he'd be promoted. I gathered that someone else was also being promoted inside the Hokage's office, but I didn't bother asking Shino.

After a while, Shino went in. Only a few moments later, I heard my name called. I entered to see that Shino as not moving. Finally, he turned and left.

When he was gone, I looked at the Hokage.

"Congratulations." She said, gesturing towards the stack of vests without even looking up from her activity.

Somehow, I always pictured it to be more climactic than this. I took the vest, waited for just a minute or two, and finally left when she did not continue at all.

I left the office. I could see Aburame Shino walking in front of me, looking at his new chuunin vest. I most certainly deserved this chuunin vest after the previous chuunin exam, and everyone knew it. I was by far the most skilled contender at the exam and to not receive my vest was shameful.

I could tell my uncle was disappointed, but it's not like I aim to please him. It's just that I had to deal with him being disappointed all the time. It was bad enough I had to deal with him in the first place.

I went back out to where Tenten was waiting.

"See?" she said. "I told you!"

It's not like I had denied that I was being promoted and told Tenten a thousand times that she was wrong. But she sure was acting like I had. "I knew it." I said.

"Aren't you going to try it on?" she asked.

Tenten certainly was being pushy today.

"I'm sure it fits." I said. I wondered why she was just out jogging around and not doing something important. It was almost the time that Gai usually called us to do some sort of crazy training thing that was probably centered entirely around Lee.

But, as a mere genin who must comply with her teacher, Tenten didn't have any say in the matter as to how Gai taught. But still, she should be off getting ready to go and train, not stand around giving me orders.

"Don't you have training to go to?" I asked her.

"I guess." she replied. "Are you not coming?"

What a preposterous question. Of course I wasn't coming. I wanted to get as far away from Gai and everything he stood for as fast as I could.

"No." I said plainly. But I knew I had to elaborate or else Tenten just wouldn't understand. "I'm a chuunin now. I don't HAVE to come."

With that, I walked away.

It was then that it hit me. I WAS a chuunin. I no longer had to attend Gai's training sessions. I was no longer Gai's student. If I made the sincere effort, I never had to see Gai, Lee OR Tenten ever again.

I felt extremely happy.

Tenten jogged past me and pretended not to care or look back at me, but I could tell she was burning with anger on the inside. That's female ninjas for you.

My skills and abilities were going to greatly increase now that I had the opportunity to go on B-rank missions and finally not have to waste time with Gai, Lee and Tenten and their ridiculous training exercises. I would finally be able to practice and train at my own rate, which was much quicker than that of both Lee and Tenten. Put together.

Most people were still sleeping in the Hyuuga house. I was as quiet as I wanted to be as I went back to my room.

I took the plastic off my vest.

As I held it, it didn't feel quite as wonderful as I thought it would. I had expected a singing choir and lights to flow from the vest as I held it, but no such thing happened.

So I laid it out on my bed and waited.

It's not like I wanted to see it get up and dance and perform magic tricks, but maybe it was just because the shock hadn't quite set in that I was a chuunin quite yet. Maybe if I put it on.

I put it on.

It felt a little better.

Just as I was beginning to feel like a real chuunin, there was a knock at the door. But the knock was pointless anyway since the person knocking at the door opened it as he knocked.

It was my uncle.

"Neji," he said. "May I come in?"

"You're already in." I said.

He nodded and shut the door behind him.

"I heard about your promotion." He said.

"Good." I replied.

"And, as a Branch House member, you know you can never succeed the Hyuuga Household."

Wow. Where did that come from? He should know that I am painfully aware of such a fact.

"Yes." Was all I said.

"Even though you are progressing at an impressive rate. You know this."

"Yes." I wonder why he was digging such a deep hole? And for no reason too.

"Your father would be proud."

Oh sure. He had to act all noble by bringing up my father. As if that was supposed to make me happy and cheery that, oh thank god! My father would be proud of me for passing the chuunin exam! That was good news to hear that I most definitely would have never been able to figure out on my own, if not for the fact that my uncle did not come in and tell me so.

"Yes." I said.

He gave another nod and left my room just as the doorbell rang. Finally.

I wondered for a moment if that was his demented way of congratulating me. If it was, he had certainly failed because now I felt worse than I felt before he had come in. He had successfully reminded me of my terrible fate of a member of the Branch House and then went further as to bring up the fact that my father was dead in a sad attempt to pat me on the back.

It almost seemed deliberate.

What a guy.

What an uncle.

He was finally gone and now…do something. That didn't involve him.

But then he was back in the doorway.

"Neji, your former teammates are at the door." He said. "And after they leave, I would like to have another word with you."

I had hoped that it would be apparent to both of them that I wasn't interested in spending any more time with them other than vaguely passing them on occasion and nodding in their direction.

But I want to the door anyway just so I could prolong my potential rendezvous with my uncle.

"Neji!" Lee ambushed me before I could even get a word out. "I came over to congratulate you!! And Tenten came too!"

Where would I be without Lee stating the obvious? "I figured so much."

"NOW we're going to take you out to eat!!" Lee yelled.

"What?" said Tenten with a confused expression, which clued me in that he had probably just thought that up on the spot.

I looked briefly back at my uncle waiting for me around the corner. Then back at Lee and Tenten. It was time to pick the lesser of two evils. "Fine." I said.

On our way to a local restaurant, Lee couldn't keep his mouth shut, but it's not like I was surprised. He kept trying to start conversation, but I hoped that maybe if I just ignored him then he would stop trying.

"Will you come and watch us in the chuunin exam next time, Neji?" I heard him ask suddenly.

That was a stupid question. He should KNOW the answer to that one.

So I decided not to even dignify that question with an answer either.

We entered the restaurant, and I immediately saw Sasuke, Naruto and Sakura sitting at a table. Of course, not before Lee. Lee was over by Sakura's side faster than I've ever seen him in training.

"Sakura!! It is so nice to see you! How are you? Are you well?" He continued like this for a minute or so, but I wasn't going to stop him. At least he wasn't bothering me anymore.

"Lee!" said Tenten. "It's a TEAM thing! And THEY'RE obviously doing a team thing too!"

I felt like reminding Tenten that I wasn't part of the team anymore, but I decided not to.

"Lee, come on." Tenten pleaded, pulling Lee away from the table.

The three of us left that area of the restaurant.

I no longer had any interest in fighting Sasuke as I watched him storm out of the restaurant for apparently no reason at all.

"What should we order?" Lee said as he grabbed a menu and opened it up. "Wow, the food smells good today! I can't wait to eat something since I'm quite hungry!"

He was certainly annoying. And something I will certainly not miss is his mouth constantly flapping.

I looked at Lee. He looked hurt and sad.

Did I say that out loud?

But at least it shut him up.

For the time being anyway…

When the silent meal was finally over, I was the first to stand up and announce that I was leaving. As much as I didn't want to have to speak with my uncle again, I also had no desire to stay there for any longer.

"Good bye, Neji!" Lee said, springing to his feet. "Feel free to stop by any time we're training!!"

I tried to break it to him that no such event would ever occur and just when I was about to answer, he reached out and gave me a hug. I was so shocked and confused that I didn't know how to react. And, by the time I realized what was happening, he let go of me.

"Lee." I said after a moment's pause.

"Yes, Neji?" Lee said.

"Don't ever do that again."


	9. Inuzuka Kiba: Congratulations

Inuzuka Kiba; 1 Year Later

Age 13

-Congratulations-

We had all seen the tournament. We had all SEEN Shino kick ass in the tournament only to fall short at the final victory. But it's not like it mattered. Kurenai told us that Shino was to be made a chuunin anyway. So I got this awesome idea that we could throw a party for him.

At first, I was going to collect up all his friends, but then I realized that we were really Shino's only friends. So Kurenai, Hinata, Akamaru and I hid outside Shino's house with bags of fun party items. Finally, when Shino exited the house, we watched him walk past us. Then, when he was far enough away, we sprung up out of our hiding spots and ran over to the front door to get ready for when he came back. He was going to get his chuunin vest and we were going to be ready.

"This is going to be great!!" I said, reaching for the doorknob.

"Wait…" Hinata said nervously. "Shouldn't we knock first?"

"Good idea, Hinata!" I said, knocking on the door. Hinata was always so considerate like that. She and I, once again, had failed to qualify after the preliminaries but we both had tried our best. By some horrible stroke of bad luck, Hinata had been paired up with Hyuuga Neji in the preliminaries just like last time. At first, they were going to make proper adjustments and have someone else fight him, but he started his ranting on the houses and stuff so she had to fight him. He beat her again.

I lost to Lee.

But it didn't really bother me all that much because my defeat wasn't humiliating like it was last time when I fought Naruto. I'm never going to live that down.

No one came to the door.

"Someone's inside." Said Akamaru.

"I know." I said. "But he's not coming to the door."

"What did Akamaru say?" Kurenai asked.

"He said someone's inside." I answered. Sometimes I forget that no one else can understand Akamaru. It seems so strange to me, but I suppose it is kinda like he's speaking a different language. Strike that. He IS speaking a different language. "I don't think anyone would mind if we just let ourselves in… we have good intentions!"

I know I wouldn't mind. If someone came into my house to set up for a party, how could I POSSIBLY be mad at them? I mean, we were wasting a lot of precious time just standing out there when the person inside was SO obviously not coming to the door.

The four of us peaked our heads in the door. No one was about, so we crept in. We started setting up the decorations.

It was my job to blow up the balloons so I went straight to that.

I think I might have blown one up a little too much because it suddenly popped.

Just when I was about to burst into hysterical laughter because of how much I had frightened the other three, I suddenly saw a figure in one of the doorways.

"Mr. Aburame!" said Kurenai. He looked kind of mad, but you can never tell with Shino and his kind. So Kurenai went over and started explaining things to him, but I figured it didn't concern me so I continued blowing up balloons, being a little more careful to not blow them up as much as I did before.

I saw Hinata coming over to me out of the corner of my eye. So I turned to face her, and I think she might have been a little surprised.

"Should we wear these party hats?" Hinata whispered. She might have just been speaking regularly because there wasn't really any reason to whisper but… oh whatever.

"Of course!" I said. "That's why we got them!"

"But they say 'Happy Birthday' on them…" Hinata observed.

I looked at the hats. "Well… they do…" I said. "But Shino's not going to notice! I'LL make sure he wears one."

"He's coming!" Akamaru said suddenly from the window. I ran over to the window and looked out.

"Guys, Shino is coming!" I said.

"That was quick." Said Kurenai. "Hide!"

We all got into our hiding place except for Shino's dad who stood there like a big annoying tree. Shino came to the door carrying his chuunin vest.

The door opened up and Shino was there.

"SURPRISE!!" we shouted when he entered.

Shino didn't really react.

"Congratulations on becoming a Chuunin, Shino!" said Kurenai.

He still didn't react. I'm not sure he knew exactly what was going on.

"We threw a surprise party for you!" I explained as I put the hat on him. I put it on him before he could see that it said Happy Birthday and not… Congratulations on Becoming a Chuunin.

"Do you feel any different?" Hinata asked.

"From what?" Shino said.

Oh come on, Shino. Even an idiot like Naruto would be able to know what Hinata was talking about.

"From when you were a genin." Hinata replied.

"Oh. No."

"They were here when I woke up." Said Shino's dad.

As if we weren't welcome! We had just thrown him a party. "Okay, Shino, so now you TECHNICALLY don't have to train with us anymore." I said, putting my arm around Shino. "But we know you still will anyway!!"

Shino didn't respond to that. He only looked at me for a moment and then pushed my arm off his shoulder. He always did that. In the year I had been on his team, never did he ever seem to appreciate physical contact. Oh well. Too bad for him.

"So what else do we have planned for today?" Kurenai asked.

"I figured we call all just have a pow-wow shindig and chill out!" I said in an excited tone so I could maybe hype Shino up a little bit.

But Shino didn't say anything in response so I figured that that was as good as an open invitation to party and trash his house and have him clean it up after we left!

"I'll leave you three to hang out by yourselves!" said Kurenai. "You don't need an old lady butting in on you! Come on, Mr. Aburame, let's give the kids some space!"

She pushed Shino's dad out of the house. I'm glad she did because he was creepy and I didn't like him all that much. All he ever really did was loom around and every once and a while, you'd find yourself in one of his really scary and ominous glares.

"What is a pow-wow shindig?" Shino asked randomly.

I looked at him with a confused expression. How did he NOT know what a pow-wow shindig was?

"THIS is a pow-wow shindig." I said. "This wonderful surprise party that we planned for you."

"How come no one else is here?" he said.

"What do you mean?" Hinata asked.

"It's only the three of us." Shino said.

"FOUR!" I interrupted. WHY is everyone always forgetting about Akamaru? It's not like they're cooler than he is or anything.

"Whatever." Said Shino.

"Well…we didn't know who else to invite…" Hinata said quietly. She didn't really have to tell him that, but I guess it's in Hinata's nature to be unconditionally honest.

"They're probably all at…" Shino began but then he trailed off. "No, never mind."

"What?" Hinata asked.

"Neji's a chuunin too." Shino answered.

I saw Hinata cringe so I figured I'd have to lighten the mood.

So I laughed. Like anyone would ever even go near Neji, let alone go to a surprise party for him. I mean, even his teammates were probably afraid of him. I know _I _definitely wouldn't want to be on the same team as him.

Then again, a lot of people say that Shino's a scary guy too. But Shino's not scary. He's just… quiet.

And…weird.

Kinda creepy…

But not SCARY.

"Yeah, like ANYONE would go to HIS surprise party!" I said, referring to Neji's potential party. "I bet not even his own teammates did." I looked back at Shino who was still standing there and not looking amused at all. "Shino, doesn't it make you feel good to know you have pals like us?" I asked him.

No one really said anything.

I could tell Shino was thinking about the fact that Neji beat him in the tournament. I mean, really. What else would he be thinking about?

Then I looked at Hinata who was thinking about the fact that Neji beat her in the preliminaries two times in a row.

I looked down at Akamaru and thankfully, I don't think he was thinking about Neji.

"Don't worry, Shino, we ALL know that it was just a weird fluke chance thing that Neji beat you!" I assured him. "Same with you, Hinata! He must have cheated or something!"

"Wow, Kiba, that's so nice." Hinata said.

"It doesn't matter that he beat me." Shino said. "We're both chuunins."

"I was just thinking that!" Hinata said.

"So what should we do?!" I asked. I mean, we were just standing around like fools talking about pointless stuff. We should have been doing fun stuff like Pin the Tail on the Donkey or breaking open a piñata. I wondered if Shino might have had a piñata because that would have definitely made this party awesome.

"I'll walk you both home." Shino said.

"HOME?!" I demanded. WHAT ABOUT THE PINATA?!

"Yeah." Said Shino. "We could have our pow-wow shindig on the way back to your houses."

I WAS going to be angry at Shino, but the fact that he had just said 'pow-wow shindig' just made me laugh on the inside. I didn't want to laugh on the outside at him because I knew he'd get mad, so I just decided to tell him that I appreciated the use of the term.

"Oh Shino." I said truthfully. "You saying 'pow-wow shindig' has just made my day."

Hinata laughed too. But Shino didn't look all that happy. But Shino NEVER looks happy! I guess we've all learned to just ignore his unhappy glares or else he would make us really sad.

I tried arguing with him for a minute or two, but he wanted his pow-wow shindig to consist of walking us home so I couldn't do much for my argument. As much as I wanted to break open a piñata…man, I'd just have to find my own piñata and me and Akamaru could have our OWN pow-wow shindig and break a piñata.

I think Shino and I mutually and telepathically came to the decision to drop Hinata off at home first.

"Bye guys!" Hinata was as she opened her door. "I'll see you tomorrow!"

"Bye Hinata!" I waved to her. And, without another word, she was gone. I looked at Shino. What Hinata had just said made me realize something. As a chuunin, Shino was no longer required to train with Hinata, Kurenai, Akamaru and I. He could now do whatever he wanted and would be going on as high as B-rank missions.

He turned to start going towards my house.

I couldn't help but ask the question that was on my mind. "You ARE going to train with us, aren't you, Shino?" I asked him. "I mean, even though you're a chuunin?"

"I don't know." Shino answered.

"You don't know?" I demanded. "Give me a straight answer for once!"

"I will sometimes." Shino said.

"That means no." Akamaru commented.

"Yeah, right Akamaru." I said. "When Shino says something, he means it."

Shino turned around and looked at me. He had one raised eyebrow but I didn't know why he was looking at me in such a confused fashion. All I did was talk with my dog. It's not like that was out of the ordinary.

"Well, you're home." Said Shino.

I looked up to see that I was, in fact, at my house.

"Okay." I said with a shrug as I went towards the door.

"Kiba." Shino said just as I opened the door.

I waited, as he didn't respond.

"Thanks for the pow-wow shindig." He said finally.

"No problem, Shino!"


	10. Haruno Sakura: My Maturity

Haruno Sakura; 1 Year Later

Age 13

-My Maturity-

I knew today would be a tender day for Sasuke.

All the genin who had passed the chuunin exam were receiving their vests today. Hinata had told me that Shino passed, but I hadn't told anyone else. Well, except for Ino. And Tenten. And a few other people I guess.

Sasuke was going to be down on himself so I had to make sure he was okay! And, at my mature, womanly age of thirteen, I would be able to impress him more than ever with my good looks and sexiness.

I must have combed my hair a thousand times that morning.

Then I realized that I wanted to take a shower first. So I showered. Then I blow-dried my hair and then I combed it again.

I decided to grow my hair out again. It's a little longer than shoulder length now, which is something I'm really happy about. I hope to grow it out nice and long and be able to tie it back into a ponytail. I'll be unique and really stand out to Sasuke, especially since Ino decided to keep hers short. She's so dumb! Everyone knows that Sasuke likes LONG hair!

I needed to paint my nails! I had to paint my nails! I got the most beautiful nail polish just the other day and I couldn't wait to wear it. I searched my drawers for it, I searched on top of my desk for it but I couldn't find it anyway.

"Mom!" I called. "MOM!!"

"What is it, Sakura?" my mom yelled back from downstairs.

"Where's my new nail polish?!" I shouted.

"I can't hear you, Sakura!" my mom yelled. "Come to the top of the stairs!"

It was so annoying when my mom forced me to do stuff like that. I went over to the top of the stairs. "Mom, I can't find my new nail polish."

"And?" my mom said.

"OBVIOUSLY I'm asking you if you know where it is."

"Why would I know where it is?"

"I'm just ASKING!!"

Wow, mom's can be SO annoying sometimes. And I'm not just saying that because I'm a teenage girl! I mean, moms are SO annoying.

I spent a good ten minutes searching for my nail polish but it was nowhere to be found. I got really upset for a minute or two, but then I figured there was always tomorrow to impress Sasuke! And the day after that! And the day after that! I had the rest of my life to impress Sasuke! After all, I AM the woman he is going to marry!

I was suddenly in a good mood as he skipped down the stairs.

"Mom, I'm leaving." I said.

"You haven't eaten." My mom said.

"MOM!" I scolded. "I'm on a DIET! Geez!"

What did I tell you? Annoying or what?

I knew that Kakashi was going to be late today like he is EVERY morning. But there's always that chance that he'll show up on time and then get mad at us for not being there. So, day in and day out I arrive on time, which is more than I can say for Naruto and Sasuke.

I sat down on the bridge and opened up my tragic romance novel. It was all about Frederick and Chelsea and their love that was so passionate and SO romantic, yet never meant to be!

I knew I should have been practicing my ninja techniques in the downtime, but really. I USED to do that but there's only so long I can be occupied with such activities early in the morning and by myself. So I had taken up reading. It's not as bad as you might think. In fact, it's quite relaxing. And Chelsea had lots of good tips on how to go about seducing Sasuke… I mean… Frederick…

I heard someone coming towards me. I looked up hopefully to see Sasuke but… unfortunately, it was Naruto.

"Good morning, Sakura!" he said.

"Naruto, I'm TRYING to read." I said. "But your loud and annoying voice is distracting me." He was so stupid for imposing himself on me like that.

"What are you reading?" Naruto asked.

"None of your business!" I said, situating myself so he couldn't see the words on the page. I wasn't embarrassed or anything, I just didn't want to give Naruto the satisfaction of seeing something I enjoyed.

Naruto didn't say anything to that. He only started pacing absentmindedly and every once and a while he'd let out a sigh. How I wished Sasuke were there. Everything would be good if Sasuke were there.

Speaking of Sasuke, I suddenly heard another set of footsteps. I looked up to see… Sasuke!

"Good morning, Sasuke!" I said, springing to my feet and throwing the book in my bag.

Would he notice my hair? Would he notice my new clothes? Would he notice my nails? Oh wait, I didn't paint my nails…

He didn't look at me.

I was sad.

"Sasuke, you are LATE!!" said Naruto, pointing at Sasuke. "I hope you're not going to make a habit of this!!"

I was ready to pummel Naruto for yelling at Sasuke like that, but suddenly Kakashi appeared.

"Good morning, students." He said. "Today, I'm late because—"

"Don't bother!!" I yelled at him.

"Well it's official." Kakashi went on. "Gai, Asuma AND Kurenai all have a chuunin on their team and I do not."

"That's not nice!" I said, looking at Sasuke just in time to see him cringe.

"Next time," he said. "I hope that at least one of you will make it to the tournament. I think it's imperative that we go over all the things that you need to improve on."

Kakashi continued describing the things we each had to improve on. For some reason, he seemed to focus a lot of his lecture on me…

"We're going to do a lot of individual training today." Kakashi continued. "It will be strenuous work, but I feel as though you three will—"

Then he stopped.

I like to think I patiently waited for him to continue. But SOME people, like Naruto, was unable to sit still and after only a few moments of waiting, said, "Will…"

"Can we get a rain check on this?" Kakashi said suddenly in response.

"What?" the three of us said in unison.

"I have to go."

With that, he disappeared.

"WHAT was that?" Sasuke said.

Oh, it was now my chance to ask Sasuke out on a date!! I would have to be subtle about it and use the correct words so I wouldn't seem straight forward or rude for that matter. "Obviously he was preoccupied by something! So let's all go out to lunch! It'll be fun!"

"Yeah!" Naruto said.

I had momentarily forgotten about Naruto. I didn't want HIM to be there on my date with Sasuke.

"Um…Naruto." I said. "YOU'RE not invited."

"What?!" Naruto pointed out irrationally. "You said ALL!!"

"But when I say ALL, I actually mean just me and Sasuke."

"You implied that you were inviting me too!!"

"Well, then that was an accident. I didn't mean to imply that I was inviting you as well!"

"Sure."

I looked over at Sasuke. Did he just say, "Sure."? Did he just agree to go out with me? This wasn't real! This was a dream or something!!

"Really?!" I said.

I guess I was so excited and giddy with happiness that I didn't even realize Naruto was still there until we got at the restaurant and it was time to tell the host that there were three of us instead of just two.

Ideally, there would have only been two people but most unfortunately, Naruto was there.

It was a round table so I sat myself next to Sasuke. No matter where I sat, I got to sit next to Sasuke!

"Sasuke, this is a DREAM!" I said, moving my chair closer to him. Then Naruto did the most annoying thing possible. He moved his chair closer to ME! As if I wanted to sit next to him!!

Because of his stupid action, Sasuke moved his chair around the table again.

I moved my chair slightly, but only so I was in the middle of the two. Even though I wanted to be closer to Sasuke, I knew if I got closer to him then Naruto would move closer to me and we would be doomed to just circle the table for the rest of our lives.

Well, maybe not our lives but for a long time.

"Hey, Sakura!" Naruto said randomly the moment I picked up my menu to look at it. "What are you going to order?"

"I don't know." I said. Then I caught Sasuke out of the corner of my eye. It was time to impress him by showing him I was watching my weight. I didn't want to look like a glutton in front of him. "Probably nothing. I'm on a diet, you know."

"You don't need to be on a diet, Sakura!" Naruto said. "You look just fine."

"What would YOU know, Naruto?" I said.

"Sakura, did you do something different to your hair this morning?" Naruto said. "Because it looks REALLY nice today!"

I knew exactly what he was trying to do. He was trying to impress me with compliments but I wasn't going to fall for it. "Naruto, that is not going to work on me."

"I'm just trying to be nice!"

"I can tell you're just trying to win me over with compliments!"

"Sakura!!" Lee yelled as he ran over and talked and talked and talked about absolutely nothing. When he finally took a breath, I tried to tell him that I was with middle of dining with Sasuke. But I didn't want to hurt his feelings because I considered him to be my friend even though he was madly in love with me. But I can't blame him for THAT!

"Lee…please…" I said.

"Will you do me the honor of dining with my team and I?" Lee requested.

"Lee! It's a TEAM thing! And THEY'RE obviously doing a team thing too!" Tenten said. I looked up and noticed that Tenten and Neji were there. I was glad she had butted in because then I didn't have to hurt his feelings. Tenten grabbed Lee and dragged him off and just when I was going to turn to Sasuke and tell him that Lee was definitely not my boyfriend, I noticed Sasuke was gripping his menu tightly with an angry look in his eyes.

"Sasuke, are you all right?" I asked him.

He must have been thinking about something awful. He threw his menu down on the table and stood up. He made his way toward the door.

I didn't want to be left there alone with Naruto!! "Sasuke, where are you going?" I called to him, but he only quickened his pace.

I hurried out the door and rounded the corner to find that he was nowhere in sight. He must have used his superior ninja abilities to get away quickly! Oh Sasuke!

"Sakura, wait up!!" I heard Naruto yell as he ran around the corner and crashed into me…probably on purpose. "Hey, where'd that stupid Sasuke go?" I asked her.

"I don't know!" I said.

"Oh well!" Naruto commented. "He was annoying anyway!"

"Naruto, you don't know ANYTHING!" I yelled. How DARE he insult Sasuke when HE was the annoying one!

I walked away from him to continue my search for Sasuke.

"What do you mean? Explain it to me!"

"I don't owe you an explanation."

"Sakura, you're acting like it's MY fault that Sasuke suddenly left for no reason!"

I stopped. Of course it was his fault. Obviously Sasuke got annoyed that he had to be spending time with Naruto so he left.

"Naruto…you just don't get it." I said. "You are talking to the future Mrs. Uchiha Sasuke here! If I am going to be the one who marries Sasuke then I can't have him just getting up and leaving in the middle of dinner!"

"Technically, we hadn't started yet." Naruto said stupidly.

"You know what I mean! I'm going to go and find Sasuke! And don't bother trying to stop me or follow me!!" I turned my back to him and didn't look back.

I was only walking for a few moments when suddenly, I heard Naruto call my name.

I turned around. "What?!" I demanded, getting very sick of Naruto.

He only smiled. "See you tomorrow!"

What an idiot.


	11. Nara Shikamaru: The Whipped

Nara Shikamaru; 1 Year Later

Age 13

-The Whipped-

If someone paid me for every time I found myself somewhere I didn't want to be, I would be able to retire being a ninja at only thirteen.

Sure, it's not like I actually knew where I was, but all I knew is that I didn't want to be there. As far as I'm concerned, as long as I'm not looking at the clouds in the comfort of my backyard or any other familiar area of Konoha, I don't want to be there.

My father and I left for a mission a little over two days ago. I was under the impression that this mission was going to be extremely difficult to fulfill, but we showed up and it turned out that our services weren't required anymore because the country had managed to solve its problems on its own.

What followed was a terrible and continuous series of unfortunate events that led us here.

Where is here?

I have no idea.

"Dad, we are lost." I said.

"We're not lost, Shikamaru." My dad said.

We were lost.

I was actually quite happy to find that our mission had been "cancelled", I guess I would call it. I figured we'd be returning home early. Our scheduled returning time had been six o'clock last night and now it was late into the next morning and still we were tramping through the forest.

My father had said that it would be pointless to travel all the way to a different country and not mull around for a little while. I thought this was very unlike my father.

But then it turns out that the particular country we visited was very famous for his high quality liquor. I guess the rest of our story is pretty self-explanatory.

I looked up at the sky.

We had been walking for way too long.

"Dad, let's just rest." I said. "This is pointless."

My father stopped walking and looked at me.

"We just rested, Shikamaru." Said my dad. For some reason, he always sounds like he has a terrible hangover. Oh right, that's because he really DOES always have a terrible hangover.

"Dad, that was an hour ago." I said, sitting down and leaning up against a tree.

I knew he couldn't argue with that logic. Besides, he obviously wanted to rest too because he sat down as well without anymore argumentation.

I just waited for him to bring up Mom.

"Your mother's probably very worried about us." He said.

"That's all you ever think about." I said. "You're so whipped."

"I am not whipped." My dad retorted.

"You are so whipped." I repeated.

He only sighed in response. He is whipped and he knows it.

"I'm just concerned for your mother." He said. "I would be worried if she was missing all day."

"You're not worried if she's worried." I said. "You're just worried that she'll yell at you for worrying her."

"Shikamaru, that's not true." He said.

Even though I knew it was true, I was going to let him think that he had won that argument. And, by not saying anything in response, he knew that he had not, in fact, won.

I don't know how long we sat there. But after a while, we both realized that we had been sitting there a long time. So we stood up and continued our journey. It must have been well passed noon… probably around two, when we finally started to catch a sight of similar surroundings.

"Konoha's not far from here." He said.

"You said that last night." I reminded him.

"But this time I know for sure." He said, pushing aside some bushes and revealing the village way off in the distance. It was very far away.

I subconsciously let out an annoyed sigh. Even though we could now see the village, it was still…so far away. It was going to take us another good hour until we reached there.

I was enthusiastic to reach home and finally be able to sleep in my own bed. One night in a hotel in the same bed as my drunken passed out father, and two nights outside on the ground. Yeah, I was definitely looking forward to sleeping in my bed. I also couldn't wait to get a little alone time and just look at the clouds.

"Shikamaru, no more rests until we get there." My father said.

"You don't have to tell me twice." I said. "I WANT to get home."

"First we go to the Hokage's office." He said.

"I know, I know." I said, rolling my eyes. I had been on a bunch of missions and knew the drill. It was always so troublesome to have to go on a mission with my father, especially if he and I were the only ones on the team. He usually had better conduct when there were other people there.

Even though both of us were eager to get back to the village, our pace didn't quicken by very much as we drew closer.

In fact, I do believe it actually slowed down.

I'm just glad we weren't returning from a strenuous mission with someone injured or something. That would have been really bad news, especially since we got lost and everything. From now on, I was going to pay attention to directions and not let my father lead the way.

No one was waiting outside the Hokage's office when we finally arrived. I wasn't really expecting anyone to be there but in a way…I was expecting people to be there. But I guess we were awfully late returning from our mission.

Even Chouji couldn't wait THAT long for us to return.

"Come in!" the Hokage called from inside.

My father and I entered.

"Well, it's good to see you both aren't dead." She said.

"Thank you." Said my father.

Man, he is whipped by every woman, not just my mother.

"Well, I heard that your mission was cancelled." Said the Hokage. "So we received no payment. I apologize for the inconvenience of the journey. You both are dismissed now."

What a drag. We travel for three days and don't even get paid for it. If I was the leader of the mission, I would have demanded payment, but my father only bowed to the Hokage and went for the door.

"Oh and Shikamaru," I heard the Hokage say in that tone that suggested she was going to give me another mission.

"Yes ma'am?" I said.

My father stopped walking as well, but she nodded at him, signaling him to leave the room. He turned away and left.

"Shikamaru, we have an important B-rank mission coming up within the week." She began. "Now, I know you've just returned from a mission, but I was thinking that since it was cancelled, you wouldn't mind going on another."

"What would the team be composed of?" I asked.

"Two chuunins and two jounins." The Hokage replied. "And, no, you would not be going on the mission with your father."

I hated how she acted as though I had a choice in the matter on whether or not I could accept the mission.

"Okay." I said. "Sounds like a fair deal."

"Good then." She said. "I'll send somebody by with details later on."

I nodded to her and left the room to find my father waiting.

"What did she want?" he asked.

"She wants me to go on another mission." I answered.

"I think she's taken a liking to you, Shikamaru." My father said. "I didn't even get this many missions when I first became a chuunin. You can consider yourself very lucky."

"Very lucky indeed." I said. "It's troublesome."

"Shikamaru, you won't think it's so troublesome when YOU'RE the Hokage and it's time to assign missions to jounins and chuunins."

That always really annoyed me. For some reason, my dad always said things like that. As if he KNEW that I was going to become the Hokage when I so obviously was not going to be. Maybe he just said that in order to convince himself that he had not failed in bringing up his son.

We reached home and my father went to the front door.

"Dad, I'm just going in the backyard." I said. "Call me back inside when Mom stops yelling at you."

"Shikamaru…" my father said, shaking his head, but I went to the backyard before he could answer.

I lied down to look at the clouds. I hardly had a few moments to myself before I heard Chouji's familiar voice.

"Shikamaru!!" Chouji exclaimed, running over to me. "We're so relieved you're okay!"

"Oh, hey Chouji." I said.

"You ARE all right, aren't you, Shikamaru?" Chouji said..

"Of course I am. What could have possibly happened?"

"COUNTLESS things, Shikamaru! ANYTHING could have happened! It was a dangerous mission!"

"What were you doing on your mission this time?" Ino asked.

Usually I'd tell them all about my mission if they asked, but I didn't want to tell them about how our mission was cancelled and then we got lost. "I can't share the details of this mission with a genin."

"Please, Shikamaru?" Ino pleaded.

"I can't share the details of this mission with a genin."

"At LEAST tell us why you were late!" she said.

"I can't share the details of this mission with a genin."

"Fine. Well, I have to go to work anyway."

Ino stormed off. Did she cut her hair again?

"Are you glad to be back, Shikamaru?" Chouji questioned.

Would the questions ever end? "Yes."

"I'm glad to see you're all right." Said Asuma. "But I can't hang around anymore. Chouji, you can have the rest of the day off."

With that, Asuma was gone.

I sighed. As much as I liked Chouji, there was only so long I would be able to handle him when all I wanted to do was stare at the clouds.

"What's the matter, Shikamaru?" Chouji asked.

I waved it off, unaware that I had made any sort of indication that something was wrong.

Chouji was quiet for a while, but I knew it would only be a matter of time before he asked something completely random that spawned from his trail of thought. "Do you miss being a genin, Shikamaru?"

"Sometimes."

"Today?"

"No, not to today."

He paused. I waited for him to continue.

"Did something go wrong on your mission?"

"You could say that."

I didn't really want to talk about the mission. I knew if I let Chouji continue to ask questions, I'd eventually let it slip that our mission had been one big screw-up.

"What have you been up to, Chouji?"

"Me?" I said.

He waited for a long time. A new record for Chouji. He actually looked like he was thinking about things while he stared thee clouds.

"Oh, Shikamaru." He said finally. "Nothing really at all. It's not interesting around here when you're away on missions."

I sat up and looked at Chouji. He had such a curious attitude about everything. But still, he was the nicest guy I knew.

"That's nice." I said.

I knew there would be more to our conversation, though, even though I had tried to end it on numerous accounts.

"Shikamaru, when is your next mission?" Chouji asked inevitably.

I didn't know whether or not to tell him about my mission that was coming up within the week. "I'm not sure." I answered, realizing there would be no harm in telling him. "Within the week."

"Already?" Chouji said, sounding incredibly outraged.

"Yup." I answered.

"Wow, Shikamaru." He said. "Being a chuunin must be really tough."

He really had no idea. Being a chuunin was troublesome and strenuous and consumed all my free time. I knew it was every genin's dream to become a chuunin, but it really wasn't as glorious as it was made out to be.

"Yeah, Chouji." I said in response. "It really is."


	12. Tenten: Polar Opposites

Tenten; 1 Year Later

Age 14

-Polar Opposites-

Neji was inside the Hokage's office getting his chuunin vest. It was really early in the morning.

I was outside jogging when I saw Neji walking towards the Hokage's office. I figured he was going to go and get his vest, but I decided to ask him anyway. He only half agreed, and mentioned that the Hokage only asked to see him and it could have absolutely nothing to do with getting his vest. We all know better.

I didn't know why, but I asked him if he wanted me to go along with him. He shrugged and said whatever, so I followed him to the Hokage's office. He asked me to wait outside found out what she wanted.

I don't know why I do it. Maybe it's because no one else does.

I knew Neji thought female ninjas could never amount to anything, so I wondered how he felt about a female Hokage? He couldn't deny that she was a good ninja, especially since she was Hokage AND she had control of whether or not he would be promoted.

He had done really well in the chuunin exam so it was no surprise to any of us that he would get promoted. And, even though he had an easy pass into the tournament because he was up against Hinata once again, he certainly proved his right to be there by winning the tournament. I would have to seriously consider the sanity of the examiners and Hokage if she hadn't promoted Neji to the chuunin level.

He has vastly surpassed any of the other genins, and I'm sure he knew it.

I watched as Aburame Shino came outside and walked past me, but I don't think he even noticed me. He was carrying a chuunin vest as well. I suppose he did deserve it as well.

Not long after, Neji came outside with his vest as well.

"See?" I said. "I told you!"

"I knew it." he said.

Of course he knew it! He just wasn't going to say it. I don't know WHY. It's not like he was being tender about it because I hadn't even gotten past the preliminaries while he and Lee did. It's just ANOTHER excuse for Neji to badmouth female ninjas.

"Aren't you going to try it on?" I asked.

"I'm sure it fits." He said. "Don't you have training to go to?"

I looked at my watch. "I guess." I replied. "Are you not coming?"

"No." he replied. "I'm a chuunin now. I don't HAVE to come."

With that, he walked away. Sometimes, I don't even know what to say about his rudeness. So I just have to ignore it most of the time.

I finished up my jog and changed my clothes. I went to the meeting spot where Gai already was. I was a little early, but I was surprised that Lee wasn't there. He's usually there before Gai is.

"Hi." I said. "Neji's a chuunin now, did you know?"

Gai nodded at me, looking rather solemn. It sure was going to be interesting training with just Lee and Gai. For some reason, I felt as though I would get lost in the background. Before, when Neji was around, he and I could train together while Lee and Gai did WHATEVER it is they do. But now that wasn't going to happen anymore.

We waited for an awfully long time until Lee finally showed up.

"LEE!!!" Gai yelled. "YOU'RE LATE!!!"

He punched Lee with all his might. No matter how many times I see it done, I still don't think it's proper punishment for anything Lee does.

"Gai!" he said. "I'm sorry I'm late!! I was just making sure that a jounin wasn't coming to my door to tell me I had passed the chuunin exam!"

"Oh Lee!" said Gai.

"Gai!!" Lee yelled as the two of them hugged. I suddenly felt very bad for him. I knew Lee aspired to be a great ninja even though he couldn't use ninjutsu or genjutsu. And I knew that he always felt that hard work would beat out geniuses as long as he kept at it. I wonder if he knew that Neji was a chuunin.

"Gai, are you going to tell him?" I asked when I noticed nothing really was happening.

"Tell me what?" Lee asked as the two of them FINALLY stopped their hugging.

"Lee, I don't know how to break it to you…" Gai started.

"What is it, Gai?" Lee asked.

"There's no EASY way to say this…"

"What?"

"This isn't something to take lightly!"

"What?"

This had to stop or it would go on all day. I let out an exasperated sigh. "Lee, NEJI'S a chuunin now!" I said FOR Gai.

Lee gasped. His face changed from happiness, to a look of pure jealousy, then sadness and then happiness again. He was trying to be happy for Neji while at the same time being sad for himself and incredibly jealous that Neji was a chuunin and he was not.

"That's why he's not here today, Lee!" said Gai. "For he is not required to train with us now that he is a chuunin!"

"Oh Gai!!" Lee wailed. I felt REALLY bad for him but then he suddenly spouted out, "Gai, I must run ten laps around Konoha!"

"Why?" I questioned.

"Because I promised myself that if I didn't pass the chuunin exam then I would do so."

I was about to slap my forehead when Gai piped in.

"Good idea!" said Gai. "I think we ALL shall do it!"

"What?" I demanded.

"TEN LAPS!!" yelled Gai.

I was annoyed because I had already gone on a run that morning. It seemed as though Gai and Lee chose the days I did morning runs to do ten laps around Konoha.

Thankfully, time passed quickly enough. I had no chance of catching up with Lee and Gai so I really only had to do three laps by the time they had finished their ten. I don't think Gai noticed though. If they did, he chose not to enforce it on me for whatever reason.

"Team!" said Gai. "Today has been an emotional day for all of you! Therefore, I will allow you to take the rest of the day off to do anything you wish! Please have a good day!"

That was probably the reason.

I didn't object to having a day off. Gai left and I looked at Lee. He looked like he WANTED to say something, but nothing was coming out. So, after waiting very patiently for about a minute, I decided that he was just going to stand there thinking all day so I left.

"Hey!" I heard Lee yell. "Let's go visit Neji and congratulate him!"

"I already saw him this morning." I said.

"Neat!!" Lee said enthusiastically, even though I hadn't meant for it to be a good thing. "Now you can see him TWICE! Let's go!"

Seeing Neji twice wasn't exactly 'neat' in my book. "Lee, I don't really want to visit Neji. He was kind of jerk this morning so I'd rather do something else."

"Like what?" Lee asked.

I thought for a moment. I didn't know what to do. And to be honest, I didn't really want to hang out with Lee anyway. It's not like I don't like Lee as a friend, but I didn't want to be seen in public with him when we weren't training or else people might think I'm like… dating him or something.

"What do YOU want to do?" Lee asked again.

"I don't know…" I said, hoping he'd get the message.

"Well, I'M going to go over to congratulate Neji." He said. "I would like it if you came, but you don't HAVE to!" He turned and left. I battled with myself for a little while, but something compelled me to follow Lee. As much as I didn't want to see Neji again OR be seen with Lee, I still went.

I was always nervous at Neji's house. The Hyuugas didn't seem to like Lee or me for some reason. It's not like we ever hung around the house for a long period of time, but every time I was there I felt so unwelcome that I couldn't wait to leave. Perhaps they were shooting for that since they obviously didn't want us to be there anyway.

"So ring the doorbell." I said, not wanting to be the one associated with disturbing them.

"You're closer." Lee said.

I gave Lee a look, and he seemed to take a hint. He rang the doorbell and the two of us waited.

When the door opened, Neji's uncle was standing there. I looked at Lee to say something, but he froze up completely. I figured since he rang the doorbell, I'd take care of asking if Neji was there.

"Um…hi…" I said haltingly. "Is…Neji home?"

He didn't really answer. He only shut the door on our faces.

I looked back at Lee who looked a little offended.

"That was rude." I said.

"Maybe he's not home…" Lee said with a shrug. He's always like that! Assuming people aren't INTENTIONALLY mean. But someday somebody has to explain that people are just MEAN sometimes.

We mutually decided there was no reason for us to hang around at the front door step for any longer so we turned around to leave. As soon as we did, I heard the door open and turned around. Neji was standing there wearing his vest.

"Neji!" Lee exclaimed excitedly. "I came over to congratulate you!! And Tenten came too!"

"I figured so much." Neji said.

"NOW we're going to take you out to eat!!" Lee announced as if we had previously determined that that's what we were going to do.

"What?" I said, though I didn't mean to. I wasn't too worried though because I knew he would never agree.

"Fine." Said Neji, shutting the door behind him.

Okay…that was weird. There was NO reason why Neji would agree to come out to eat with us. You'd think there would be a hundred other things he'd rather be doing.

"I'm glad at least ONE of us became a chuunin!" Lee said.

I figured he was speaking to Neji so I didn't answer.

"NEXT year Tenten and I will be chuunins!" I tried again.

He was OBVIOUSLY speaking to Neji so I, once again, stayed quiet.

"Will you come and watch us in the chuunin exam next time, Neji?" Lee asked.

That was most definitely a question directed only towards Neji so I only looked at him to hear his answer, but he didn't reply. Lee looked a little sad, but he got over it as we entered the restaurant to see Sakura sitting at one of the tables with Sasuke and Naruto!

"Sakura!!" Lee yelled, sprinting over and sliding in on one knee. "It is so nice to see you! How are you? Are you well? It's been a long time since we last met! Days, I think!"

"Lee…please…" Sakura said.

"Will you do me the honor of dining with my team and I?" I requested.

There was no way to keep Lee from saying hello to her. But he had no right to invite her to eat, especially since we were eating as a TEAM and they obviously were too.

"Lee!" I tried to explain to him. "It's a TEAM thing! And THEY'RE obviously doing a team thing too!"

"Sasuke, are you all right?" Sakura asked, not even thanking me for getting Lee away from her.

"Lee, come on." I said, trying to get us to a table before anything else happened.

"What should we order?" Lee said with a big grin. "Wow, the food smells good today! I can't wait to eat something since I'm quite hungry!"

"One thing I will certainly not miss is your mouth constantly flapping." Neji said.

I looked at Neji with a disapproving glare, but he didn't even notice or care. He went to looking at his menu and Lee sank down in his seat. I felt so sorry for him. I felt sorry for Neji too. He was completely alienating himself from the one person who ever even tried to be his friend.

But Lee seemed to be over it by the time our meal was over. Neji stood up first and then Lee did too.

"Good bye, Neji!" he said. "Feel free to stop by any time we're training!!"

Without warning, Lee grabbed Neji and hugged him. I almost burst out laughing but he quickly turned my head into my napkin and pretended to cough. I knew Neji would not appreciate that.

Lee looked awfully satisfied when he was finished.

"Lee." Neji said.

"Yes, Neji?" Lee replied.

"Don't ever do that again." Neji answered. He took that surprisingly well.


	13. Aburame Shino: PowWow Shindig

Aburame Shino; 1 Year Later

Age 13

-Pow-Wow Shindig-

The Aburames tend to fly under the radar. Not many people know of us and those who do tend to avoid us. It's not like it bothers me, but I've always found the rest of the world to be rather judgmental just because we're more unique than they are.

I never saw my mother much. She was apart of ANBU and, because of that, she was away on missions a lot. My father was once part of ANBU as well but once I was born, it was either my mother or my father had to lower back to the ranks of a jounin in order to watch over me. I suppose my father drew the short straw this time.

I got a call early that morning from one of the Hokage's closest and most trusted ninjas. He told me that the Hokage wanted to speak with me, which was good news because I had just taken the chuunin exam and done well.

So now I was waiting outside the Fifth Hokage's office. The other people from the Chuunin Exam Tournament were waiting outside as well. I was pretty confident that I had done well but you never really know. The system is rather flawed, especially after what had happened last time. There really should have been another tournament last time to make up for the fact that half of the contenders didn't get a chance to fight.

Only one had been able to defeat me in the tournament this time and that was Hyuuga Neji. He used a cheap shot to defeat me, in my opinion. He was behind me and I was next in line. Of course he was going to become chuunin. He wouldn't have been called to speak with the Hokage unless he was going to become a chuunin.

The person in front of me was taking a long time and I was getting slightly impatient. It was early and I prefer to sleep in.

Finally, he emerged. He was carrying a plastic bag with a chuunin vest neatly folded inside of it. Without even looking in my direction, he passed by me and walked down the hall.

From inside the office came, "Aburame Shino."

I suddenly wasn't feeling quite as confident anymore as I entered the office. I don't normally feel that way, but for some reason I felt as though they were calling me in to discuss with me what I had to do in order to improve myself and become a chuunin next time around.

People normally don't take the Aburames seriously. They look at us and think we're weird bug freaks but it's really not true. Yes, the things we do are a little different and yes, we do have a connection to bugs. But other than that, we're just like the other members of the village.

The Fifth Hokage was sitting behind her desk with a pile of chuunin vests in plastic bags folded on her desk. I wanted one. I wanted two. But I had this sinking feeling that I wouldn't be getting any at all.

"Congratulations." She said, gesturing towards the stack of vests without even looking up from her activity. I waited for a moment and then took one vest.

"Hyuuga Neji." She said as he entered. I looked at him and then at my vest. Was this it? What had taken so long with the other kid if all she did was gesture to a stack of vests? I wasn't going to dwell on those thoughts any longer since I could tell Neji wanted me to leave so he could get his vest. So I exited the office. I contained myself all the way home when I passed a familiar face. His name completely escapes me, but I recognized him. Uzumaki Naruto…? No…

Maybe I didn't know him after all. He didn't say anything, only looked at me briefly. So I figured it had been a mistake.

Upon reaching my house, I knew something was going on. There were numerous people inside and there was no reason for that. How could there possibly be more than my father inside?

I opened the door.

"SURPRISE!!"

There were extra people inside, just as I had thought. Kurenai was there, as well as Kiba and Hinata. They had never been in my house before. There was confetti. And balloons. And streamers. All these things had not been here when I had left.

"Congratulations on becoming a Chuunin, Shino!" said Kurenai.

"We threw a surprise party for you!" said Kiba as he snapped a paper party hat to my head. It pinched my neck and was not comfortable, but I figured I'd take it off when his back was turned. Kiba tended to get upset about things like that so I've learned to just let him have is fun and then adjust them later.

"Do you feel any different?" Hinata asked pleasantly.

"From what?" I asked.

"From when you were a genin." Hinata replied.

"Oh." I said. "No."

I looked at Father. He was just standing there silently.

"They were here when I woke up." He said finally.

"Okay, Shino, so now you TECHNICALLY don't have to train with us anymore." Said Kiba as he put his arm around me. "But we know you still will anyway!!"

I don't know what it is with Kiba, but he seems to think that I ENJOY it when he invades my personal space in such a manner. He puts his arm around me and gets too close for comfort. I did what I always do in those situations. I looked at him for a moment to give him the benefit of the doubt but when I got no response, I had to physically remove any contact between the two of us.

Unfortunately, he once again looked undeterred.

"So what else do we have planned for today?" Kurenai asked.

There was more?

"I figured we call all just have a pow-wow shindig and chill out!" Kiba announced.

…

What in the world was a pow-wow shindig?

It kind of sounded like a dog thing, so I figured it might have been some kind of ritual that Kiba performed in his family. The last thing I wanted was to deal with some kind of ancient Inuzuka ritual.

I watched as Kurenai pushed my father out of the house.

I knew it. We were going to have to perform an Inuzuka ritual.

I looked at Kiba. He was only standing there with a usual blank look on his face. When would the torture begin? Was the anticipation all part of it?

Hinata and Kiba said nothing. Nothing about the pow-wow shindig. Everyone seemed to know what it was except for me.

"What is a pow-wow shindig?" I said finally.

Kiba looked more confused than I have ever seen him in his life. And that's saying a lot because Kiba gets confused easily.

"THIS is a pow-wow shindig." He replied. "This wonderful surprise party that we planned for you."

A party? I hardly think the three of us hanging out is really a 'party'. It seemed more like… the three of us hanging out. "How come no one else is here?" I asked.

"What do you mean?" Hinata asked.

"It's only the three of us." I pointed out.

"FOUR!" Kiba yelled, referring to Akamaru.

"Whatever." I said.

"Well…we didn't know who else to invite…" Hinata said. It's not that I was offended that no one else had wanted to come to my surprise pow-wow shindig, like Hinata obviously thought I was, I was just confused as to why it was considered to be a pow-wow shindig if there were only thee people there.

Then I figured Neji was having a pow-wow shindig too and everyone was probably there.

"They're probably all at…" I started but then I reevaluated my thoughts and corrected myself. "No, never mind."

"What?" Hinata asked.

"Neji's a chuunin too." I answered.

Kiba laughed out loud.

I took a step back from him.

"Yeah, like ANYONE would go to HIS surprise party!" Kiba practically bellowed. "I bet not even his own teammates did." Then, to add to his complete random streak, he turned to me and said, "Shino, doesn't it make you feel good to know you have pals like us?"

I never really considered Kiba and Hinata to be 'pals'. More so… teammates.

But if he considered me as a pal, I wasn't going to stop him. As long as he didn't expect me to 'pal around' with him.

"Don't worry, Shino, we ALL know that it was just a weird fluke chance thing that Neji beat you!" Kiba continued with his random statements. "Same with you, Hinata! He must have cheated or something!"

"Wow, Kiba, that's so nice." Hinata said, though she obviously knew that Neji had beaten her fair and square. It was a fluke when he beat me, but not when he beat her.

But it didn't really matter. If I had not become a chuunin because of Neji then that would have been one thing. I'm a chuunin so I have no qualms with him. "It doesn't matter that he beat me." I said so we wouldn't get stuck in a spiral of bad mouthing and fearing Neji. "We're both chuunins."

"I was just thinking that!" Hinata said.

Okay…

"So what should we do?!" Kiba…went on. With more random stuff.

Maybe this had been sufficient enough time for a pow-wow shindig. I don't really know how long they're supposed to be since this was my first one, but I figured that if I wanted it to be over then it was over… since it was MY pow-wow shindig.

"I'll walk you both home." I offered.

"HOME?!" Kiba demanded.

I take it pow-wow shindigs are usually longer. "Yeah." I said. "We could have our pow-wow shindig on the way back to your houses."

Kiba looked speechless for once in his life. I thought maybe he was about to say something intelligent, but I was wrong. I was SO wrong.

"Oh Shino. You saying 'pow-wow shindig' has just made my day."

Hinata laughed at me too. I didn't understand. THEY had called it a pow-wow shindig so what was so hilarious about me calling it a pow-wow shindig? After all, that's what it was, wasn't it?

Kiba argued with me for a little while, but Hinata stood idly by. I let him babble without saying a word, seeing if maybe he'd resolve the problem on his own if I just stood there staring at him. He went around in circles with himself and eventually came to the conclusion that it would be best if he and Hinata went home. I won the argument without saying a word. That either makes me incredibly intelligent or Kiba incredibly stupid. Maybe it's both.

Naturally, we had to take Hinata home first. Even though Kiba lived closer to my house than Hinata did and for Kiba to walk all the way to Hinata's house and then back to his was a little senseless, he still did it.

I didn't see any sign of Neji, so that meant it was safe for Hinata to go into her house.

"Bye guys!" Hinata was as she opened her door. "I'll see you tomorrow!"

"Bye Hinata!" Kiba waved. I nodded to her as she disappeared into her house.

What an interesting family dynamic she must have.

I turned around and realized that Kiba was staring directly at me. I would never understand Kiba's insane ways, but I chose to pretend as though I didn't notice so I wouldn't embarrass him.

We started going towards Kiba's house. I knew exactly where it was. Usually, when the three of us had to do something together at a certain house, we went to Kiba's house. I had never been inside Hinata's house and I think she preferred it that way. And both of them preferred to avoid my house as much as possible. Kiba's house was the only other one to go to.

"You ARE going to train with us, aren't you, Shino? I mean, even though you're a chuunin?" Kiba said suddenly.

He actually looked a little serious, like he had come to that statement not by random chance, but by actually thinking.

"I don't know." I answered.

"You don't know?" Kiba said. "Give me a straight answer for once!"

"I will sometimes." I told him. And it was true. I have to admit, I haven't learned everything there is to know from Kurenai and therefore would still have to attend some training sessions.

Akamaru barked and Kiba retorted with, "Yeah, right Akamaru. When Shino says something, he means it."

Like I said, I would never understand Kiba.

"Well, you're home." I said when we reached his house.

"Okay." Kiba said, back to his regular demeanor. He went up to his house.

He opened the door. I realized I should thank him for the pow-wow shindig. "Kiba." I said. If he didn't hear me, I'd just forget about it, but he did. And he turned around, waiting.

"Thanks for the pow-wow shindig." I finally said.

"No problem, Shino!"


	14. One Year Later

Intro; 2 Years later

Everyone is pretty sure that he or she is the center of the universe. They all see the same event in a different way. How is everyone growing up? What will their reactions to the new events in the village be?

Many people have finally reached it to the tournament in the chuunin exam. This leaves the rest of have to sit around and watch them. Shikamaru is working close to the Hokage and having a hard time finding time for himself. Meanwhile, Neji and Shino are on a mission of their own, trying to make it back in time to see their teammates fight in the tournament.

The four teams of ninjas that we have come to know and love can't stay thirteen forever. Eventually, everyone grows up.

Will Naruto become Hokage?

Will Shino succeed in his mission?

Will Sakura ever get a clue?

Will Lee impress the crowd?

Will Kiba evaluate his feelings?

Will Ino always follow Sasuke wherever he goes?

Will Neji become even more disagreeable?

Will Chouji ever make it to the Chuunin exam?

Will Hinata find a way to change herself?

Will Sasuke fall for someone?

Will Tenten stay friends with Sakura?

Will Shikamaru keep this up for much longer?

All these questions, and many more, will be answered. One year at a time.


	15. Uzumaki Naruto: Find Out

Uzumaki Naruto; 2 Years Later

Age 14

-Find Out-

"SAKURA!!!" I yelled, pounding on Sakura's door. "SAKURA!! ARE YOU THERE?!"

I was standing outside Sakura's door waiting very patiently for her.

She had told me yesterday while I was asking her over and over that she would walk down to the Chuunin Exam tournament with me so I made sure to be nice and early. But now… it was a little weird. Why wasn't Sakura answering the door?

All of a sudden, the door opened and Sakura's mother was there looking surprised.

"Oh!" she said. "Why, hello there Naruto!"

"Oh, hi Mrs. Haruno." I said. "Where's Sakura?"

"Why do you ask?" she said.

"Sakura said she'd walk down to the tournament with me!" I said. "I'm in the Chuunin Exam Tournament, you know!"

"That's wonderful, Naruto!" she said happily. "But I'm afraid Sakura has already left."

"WHAT?!" I demanded. "How could she have already left?!"

"Her friend…oh…what was her name?" Sakura's mom said, looking up as if that would help her remember. "Oh, I just can't remember. But her friend came by earlier and the two of them went down to the tournament to get good seats."

"To get good seats?" I said. "To watch me?"

"I suppose." She said with a shrug. "I was just on my way down now."

"Oh, okay!" I said. "I have to hurry though! Thanks!"

"Bye, Naruto!" said Sakura's mother.

Sakura's mom was a pretty nice lady. Sakura had probably been waiting for me but had to leave so she could be sure to get front row seats so she could see me fight better. Now I had to get to that tournament and win so I could impress her!

I had been counting down the days to this tournament. I can't wait to become a chuunin so I can become a jounin so I can become Hokage. Unfortunately, that Stupid Sasuke was also in the tournament this year but I'd show everyone that I was a better fighter than him. After all, we couldn't have been put in better spots. He fought first and I fought last, meaning it would be me and him all the way to the finals.

I had to fight Lee. I wasn't worried about beating him. I was pretty sure that'd he'd be a pushover.

Finally, I could see the stadium area in view. I quickened my pace once I heard the cheering crowd, thinking maybe I was a little late.

Fortunately, I was not. I arrived with time to spare and waited in the overhang area where all the fighters were. Sasuke, Lee, Kiba, Hinata, Ino and two people from different villages were there. Yatara; a pretty girl from the Sand Village who obviously has a crush on me! Demakase… um… I don't know much about him.

I looked at the crowd. That's when I saw her! SAKURA!! There was still time before the tournament started so I could go over and say hi to her!!

"SAKURA!" I yelled, running over. She was sitting with Tenten. "You got a great seat!! You'll really be able to see me fight from here!"

"Naruto, I came to watch SASUKE fight." Sakura said. "And Lee, Ino and Hinata because they're my friends. Pretty much everyone except you."

"Aren't _I _your friend?" I asked.

"Naruto…you'll never understand." Said Sakura, shaking her head.

I didn't know how to react to that. But Tenten didn't say a word and Sakura didn't say anything more. So I trudged back to the overhang area just as Sasuke and Demakase went into the fighting arena.

That's when I saw Lee standing there. It made me so angry that Lee was higher on Sakura's list of people to watch fight even though I was on the same team as her. I figured I'd put him in his place and remind him that I was the one who was going to become Hokage around here.

"Hey Lee!!" I yelled at him.

He looked around, confused at first. Then he saw me. "Naruto!!" he said, sounding… HAPPY. "We are to fight each other in the first round!! I can't wait to begin!!"

"Yeah right, Lee!" I said, miffed about the fact that he wasn't taking me seriously even though I was going to beat him so bad. It obviously had to be an act because there's no way he'd be able to be that calm. "I bet you're shaking in your boots because you know I'll beat you!"

"Oh, all right Naruto." He said after a moment's consideration.

HA! I caught him in THAT lie.

"Winner; Uchiha Sasuke." I heard the examiner as the crowd cheered some more.

Sasuke sauntered back over to where we were all waiting, acting like he was the coolest person in the world even though he wasn't.

I was going to go over and beat him up for being so pompous, but he was ambushed by the pretty Sand girl who swooned over him. Why does Sasuke always have to get all the girls?! He doesn't even put it to good use because he just ignored her!!

"Ino, you're up next, right?" he said to Ino. Whoa. Ino cut her hair again.

"Yeah, I am!" Ino answered.

I had to go and give Sasuke a little piece of my mind. I stomped over to him to get his attention. "Hey Sasuke!" I said. "You think you're SO cool just because you beat that Mist guy up! Well you're NOT!"

"Right, Naruto." Sasuke said.

That stupid Sasuke!! He was definitely going to get what's coming to him!!

That's when Lee ran over. "Sasuke!! Promise you'll save the finals for your fight with ME!!"

HEY! By making a comment like that, Lee was implying that he was going to defeat me in our round!!

"I'M fighting Sasuke in the finals!!" I yelled at him.

"I thought we all mutually decided that _I _was going to fight Sasuke in the finals." Kiba said.

"You're ALL wrong because _I _will fight Sasuke!" said Yatara.

That's when the argument began. I wasn't arguing for the BENEFIT of fighting Sasuke, I was just trying to show everyone that I would be the one in the finals since it was a given that Sasuke was going to be in the finals. Soon, I came to realize that the only person I was arguing with was Yatara because Kiba had ran off to make sure Hinata was all right.

Why?

Because Ino had won.

Hinata was taken to the medical tent and Kiba came back over. The fact that Yatara turned her attention to congratulating Ino sort of ended our argument.

"Nice job!" said Yatara to Ino.

"Thanks!" said Ino.

"I hope I can fight you later on!" said Yatara.

"Hey!" said Kiba. "You're fighting ME next and I'm going to beat you!"

Kiba and Yatara both went out to the fighting area.

I guess that was the end of my argument. It was time to get pumped up for my fight against Lee even though I was obviously going to win.

The fight between Kiba and Yatara was… eh. Nothing special. I knew I'd be able to beat either of them so I didn't really care who won. I kinda wanted Kiba to win because he's my friend, but I also kinda wanted Yatara to win because she's pretty and I want to impress her.

However, in the end, they BOTH lost.

It was a double knockout.

Oh well! That only means that once I beat Lee, I automatically go onto the finals where I will fight Sasuke!! I decided to announce that to the world.

"ALL RIGHT!!" I cheered. "NOW I AUTOMATICALLY GET TO FIGHT SASUKE!!!"

I realized that Lee had yelled the exact same thing at the exact same time I did. So, he thought he would beat me. Well, he wasn't going to. I'd show him a thing or two about being a ninja in our fight.

…Which was right now.

The crowd was suddenly completely silent as we made our way out.

I wondered why. The crowd didn't usually react like this. They didn't even seem so captivated during Sasuke's fight! That just goes to show that I am a MUCH more interesting ninja than him!

"You two better not disappoint the crowd." Said the examiner.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"You ready?" the examiner said, not answering my question or even coming close to answering my question. "Go."

Even though I wasn't entirely ready, I was ready enough to dodge Lee's initial attack.

Almost immediately following, he made another attack. But, instead of dodging it, I blocked it and then threw him aside.

Then he made another attack. He followed up with many other attacks one right after another. I blocked or dodged every single one.

Now, either Lee was getting worse or I was just much much better.

He looked like he had begun to think. It as now time for the Kage Bunshin no Jutsu! It was an especially effective attack against someone like Lee who couldn't use ninjutsu or genjutsu like I could. That must be so frustrating for him, but it wasn't time to be bothered by it.

My clones did a good job attacking, but Lee also did a good job defending.

The battle progressed much like that for a while. Lee didn't look like he was slowing down at all, so it was time to use one of my best and newest attacks. I stood back to gather up some chakra and strength for the attack.

As I was gathering the strength, it looked as though Lee also had a plan. He was grabbing something tied around his feet.

I had forgotten that he always wore weights like that.

He lifted them off his feet and threw them behind him. Upon reaching the ground, they created enormous craters and threw dust up into the air. I was, at first, extremely intimidated but I couldn't show him that I was.

"Yeah right, Lee!" I said in attempt to psych him out and discourage him from whatever plan he had… planned. "Like you can beat me just by taking off a little weight!"

"A LITTLE weight, Naruto?!" Lee said, sounding a little angry. I guess my taunting had worked. But then I realized that I had taken all the focus off building up my chakra while I was distracted by Lee taking off his weights and then making fun of him.

I immediately went back to the chakra, but suddenly, a green blur appeared in front of me and knocked me right off my feet. I was then stuck in a barrage of attacks that I couldn't even begin to defend because I couldn't see where they were coming from. I raised my hands to protect my face, but that only left the rest of my body completely vulnerable and exposed for harm. Lee had the upper hand and there was nothing I could do about it until there was a break in his attacks.

Then it came. He stopped for just a moment and I had time to steady myself. Just when I was steadied, I looked up only to see a fist in my face. Everything seemed to move in slow motion. I couldn't hear a thing. All of a sudden, I felt pain as I hit the wall of the stadium.

I couldn't move. I felt like every bone in my body was crushed.

I thought about Sakura!! And the Hokage! I hadn't impressed either of them!! How was I going to become a chuunin at this rate?

The last thing I heard was the examiner saying, "Winner; Rock Lee."

I woke up a little while later. I was lying on a bed in the medical tent. How did I know it was the medical tent? Probably because of all the medical ninjas.

But none of them were paying much attention to me because they were all preoccupied with someone across the room. I guess the medical tent wasn't much of a medical tent. More so a medical building.

I sat up to see who was getting all the attention. It was Ino. Had she and Sasuke already fought?

"Hey, you all right there?" came a voice. I looked up to see that one medical ninja had stayed behind to watch me.

"Yeah…I'm okay." I said finally.

"You hit that wall pretty hard!" said the ninja.

"I guess…"

"It's nothing to be ashamed of. That Rock Lee is a rock solid ninja!"

I raised an eyebrow. Was that supposed to be some sort of joke to make me feel better?

"Um…okay." I said. "Can I go?"

"If you feel well enough." Said the medical ninja with a shrug.

I got off the bed. My body didn't feel very good, but I didn't want to hang out for very much longer. I wanted to go someplace where I could wallow in self-pity.

Obviously, I needed more training. I didn't even want to see any of the finals with Sasuke and Lee. Actually, for all I knew, they had already happened.

But I just wanted to be by myself right now.

So I went to my favorite Ramen stand and ordered myself a bowl.

I sat there. For some reason, I didn't even feel in the mood for Ramen.

I had been hoping to become a chuunin. And now I felt even stupider that I had mocked Lee so much and said I would beat him when he beat me so easily. Yeah, I definitely needed more training. How did I even make it to the tournament?

"Hey Naruto!" I heard Iruka behind me.

"Iruka!" I said, suddenly feeling better as I spun around and he sat down.

"Nice job in the Tournament, Naruto." Said Iruka.

I frowned. "I don't need that." I said.

"I'm serious!" he laughed. "Even though you didn't win, everyone could see that you were trying your best!"

"Hey, Iruka, did you watch the finals?" I asked. Even though I didn't really want to know if Sasuke had won… I still kinda wanted to know if Sasuke had won. It didn't make much sense, but I often can't make much sense of what goes through my head.

"…Yeah." Iruka answered.

"Oh." I said, looking down. I hadn't seen Lee or Sasuke in the medical building. "Who won?"

"Do you really want to know?" Iruka asked.

"Yes, I want to know!" I said.

"Do you _really_ want to know?" Iruka said.

"YES!" I said.

"Maybe you should ask one of them." Iruka replied.

"Just tell me!!" I complained.

Iruka shook his head.

I crossed my arms. "If you don't tell me then you have to pay for my Ramen." I threatened.

"Oh really?" Iruka said, raising both eyebrows. "I was going to do that anyway."

"Just tell me!" I commanded.

"Naruto, if you want something you have to go out there and do it for yourself!" Iruka said. "If you want to become a chuunin, you have to train hard and not spend so much time on other things! If you want to know who won the tournament, you have to find out for yourself!"

"Iruka, is this one of those lessons of yours?" I said.

"Yes, it is." Iruka replied. "I was trying to be metaphorical but I had to spell it out for you."

"All right, fine!" I said. "From now on, I'll be the most dedicated ninja ever and I'll pass the next chuunin exam."

"You can't just SAY it." Iruka said. "You have to MEAN it."

"I DO mean it!" I protested.

He gave me a look.

I sighed. "Okay, okay." I said. "Iruka, I SWEAR…" I looked around. "On this bowl of Ramen! That I will become the most dedicated ninja ever!"

Iruka nodded and laughed slightly. He knew that if I swore on the Ramen, I was serious. And I was serious.

I would become a chuunin.

Then a jounin.

Next top, Hokage!

Nothing, not even SASUKE, could stop me now! I was on a journey to become recognized by the entire village and if I was going to succeed, then I'd have to kick it up a notch!

But I still wanted to know who won the match…


	16. Aburame Shino: Too Late

Aburame Shino; 2 Years Later

Age 14

-Too Late-

I guess the Hokage didn't take me very seriously since I come from the clan of the Aburames.

I got so few B-rank missions that I might as well have still been a genin. I was no low-ranked chuunin so there's no reason why I should not receive higher B-rank missions.

Finally I received one, but of all people... I had to travel with Hyuuga Neji. In addition, it was a mission that involved escorting a loud teenage girl named Ito from one village to another. But this girl just so happened to be the daughter of the Kazekage, which meant there would be assassins and ninjas trying to kill her JUST because of who her father was.

"How much FURTHER?!" Ito complained.

I was angry that I finally received a B-rank mission on the day of the Chuunin Exam Tournament. Both Hinata and Kiba were in the tournament and I had hoped to return in time to watch them. But at the rate we were going at, that didn't look like it was going to happen.

"We already told you that we'd be there in another hour." Neji said, stopping to address the girl. Why did he stop? We didn't have time to spare. "But not if we keep stopping like this."

"I'm going to tell my father on you two!" she cried.

"What for?" Neji said. "We're only doing our job."

"You're RUSHING me!" she said.

"You're the one who wants to get there faster." Neji said.

"Neji, don't bother." I said before Ito could respond. He was letting her distract him. "Let's just go."

"We should slow down just a bit." Neji said.

"No." I said. "We only have an hour and half until the Exam starts."

"My father said I didn't have to be there for that!" Ito whined.

"But _I _want to be there for that." I said to her. "Both of my former teammates are in it and I want to see their fights."

"I don't care!" Ito yelled so loudly my ears hurt. "I'm not going to kill myself tromping through some kind of jungle just so you can watch your friends beat each other up! I'm RESTING!" That was certainly a degrading view of the ninja world. I thought it was strange that her father was the Kage of a village, yet she had no appreciation for ninjas.

I looked at Neji, hoping he would do something to make her move. "There will be other exams to watch." Was all he said.

That made me angry. I wasn't going to show it or dwell on it, though.

So I began to walk back and forth, hoping that would clue in Neji and Ito that I wanted to leave. I had already stated my requests on numerous occasions so saying it again would be pointless. They obviously cared nothing about my opinion and therefore nothing could be done to remedy the situation.

Ito was moaning and sighing as if her life was a big hard mess that just made her sigh. Her final sigh suggested she was about to say something, so I stopped my pacing and looked at her.

Sure enough, she spoke. "I'm so angry at my father. He should have made this an A-rank mission so you guys would send five jounin ninjas instead of just two pathetic chuunins."

I think Neji and I both whipped our heads around to glare at her after that comment.

"'Pathetic' is not the—" Neji began but I think he noticed it as soon as I did.

He, being closer, grabbed a weapon and deflected numerous shuriken away from Ito that were coming down from the trees. Ito began to shriek as soon as she realized she was in danger.

"Shut her up!" Neji said in a very commanding tone as he leapt up into the trees.

I guess he liked to think that he was the mission leader. I went over to Ito to calm her down.

"Ito, stop." I said. "You're not in danger anymore."

"What's happening?!" she cried.

"You have to stop screaming so you don't attract attention." I said.

"They already KNOW we're here!" she screamed.

I turned around to block an attack just as another ninja came in to punch me out of the way. It was not the same man who had attacked Ito earlier. He went to attack me with the other arm but I think he caught sight of the infamous Aburame bugs and decided to back off instead.

Actually, now that I think about it, they're not all that famous.

I couldn't concentrate with Ito screaming constantly.

"Ito, you must calm down." I advised, turning around only to see that she had another ninja sneaking up on her while my back was turned.

I ran over and attacked the ninja before he could do any damage. The two ninjas stood near each other and then nodded.

Both ran in to attack at the same time. It would do them no good because I was prepared for such a decision of fighting. My bugs swarmed from either side, heavily distracting them from their task at hand.

There were no other ninjas in the area so I focused my energy on defeating these two. They were likely two jounins or high-level chuunins or else they wouldn't have been able to sneak up on us without being detected.

When they saw the bugs, they immediately backed off. But they didn't stop running. They ran away until I could not see them anymore. I hadn't even done that much so there was no reason for them to run away like that. I was a bit skeptical as to their reasoning for quitting so early, but I wasn't going to argue and make them come back.

That's when Neji had returned.

"What happened?" I asked. He had, after all, leapt up into the trees without a word to me other than a command to make Ito be quiet.

"There were two of them." Neji replied. "But they disappeared. And you?"

Same situation as me. How peculiar. "The same." I answered. "I'm thinking jounin assassins from the Sand Village."

"Assassinate me?!" gasped Ito, finally taking a breath. "But WHY?"

"I doubt they were trying to kill her." Neji objected. "They probably wanted to take her hostage to use against the Kazekage. It's best we get her back to the village as soon as possible."

"I agree." I said.

I was going to allow him to do something about it since I would prefer not to have any physical contact at all.

"Hey!" she yelled at him. "Don't be so rough!"

"We have to go now." Neji said. "Unless you want to be killed."

"You just said that they weren't trying to kill me!" she whimpered.

"That is just a speculation." I said. There was no reason to frighten her or else she'd just start screaming again, but we weren't about to lie to her.

Neji pulled her along on our way to the village.

At this rate, we would never get back to watch the tournament in time.

"You know, I bet you guys are the types who never have any fun!" Ito said suddenly. I'd prefer if she didn't say anything so we could focus on making sure no one else was sneaking up on us. "I bet all you do all day long is sit around and train!"

"How does 'sitting around' and 'training' have any correlation whatsoever?" Neji said, taking her bait.

"Do you guys even have girlfriends?" Ito said.

I didn't even bother responding to that. Neji didn't say a word either.

"Oh…I see." She said. "You guys are…" she paused. "Aren't you?"

As much as I didn't want to seem intrigued by her question, I couldn't help but ponder about what she meant. "Are what?" I asked finally.

"Just ignore her." Neji said. I felt stupid that I had fallen for that. She tricked me into responding to her.

"Then you guys ARE together!" she laughed.

We both stopped and turned around, staring at her.

"Or…not?" she said with a smile.

"Do me a favor and don't say anything else." Neji said, taking the words right out of my mouth.

Neji and me. What a joke.

"Do you suppose those ninjas will come back to kill or abduct me?" she asked even though Neji had JUST told her to stop talking.

"I hope not." Said Neji.

I hope so, I thought.

"Are you worried about me?" she said to Neji. I was glad she was bothering him and not me.

"No." said Neji. "It's just that if you die or get abducted, I lose my credibility as a ninja."

"Oh." She said, making a face.

I was tired of this conversation. I wanted to make it back to the village and we weren't moving fast enough for my liking. "There's still time to make it to the tournament before it starts." I said.

"I'm getting a blister!!" was the only response I got from Ito.

"Get over it." Neji said.

"It hurts!" Ito complained, trying to wrench her arm from Neji's grip. "I can hardly walk on it!"

What an annoyingly loud girl.

I thought about the ninjas attacking us. It wasn't entirely making sense.

"Neji, don't you think it's strange that those ninjas attacked us and then disappeared so suddenly?" I said, hoping to get a little feedback.

"Of course."

Okay…so much for feedback.

"What if they were scouts?" I tried, stopping. "What if there is more coming to finish the job?"

"Well, hopefully they won't run away so we can finish them off this time." Neji said.

"You don't have to worry about that!" came a voice as suddenly, four ninjas dropped down on us. I was attacked by two of the ninjas, different from the ones who had attacked us earlier.

"Protect her!" I heard Neji yell as I suddenly felt a bump against my back. I turned around to see Ito there.

I had to practically dive in front of her to keep her from being pummeled by one of the ninjas. She continued to yell annoyingly as I moved her to the side to avoid another attack.

"YOU protect her." I said, unable to deal with her shrieks that close to my ear. I tossed her back to Neji and went back to my fending off of the ninjas.

I turned around just in time to block an attack. The ninjas were coming on strong, but I didn't have any opportunity to use my bugs.

"I'm a little busy right now!" Neji said as I suddenly got Ito back in my face again.

The ninjas proceeded to back me up into a tree as I had the screaming teenage girl behind me. They were focusing only on attacking her, but of course I was in their way.

I grabbed her by the shoulders I flung her up over the ninjas and back over to Neji. "Likewise," I said to him.

Then I spun back around to attack the ninjas' backs. But just as I did, two more appeared in front of them and blocked my attack. I had to almost bend myself in half to avoid the attacks from the ninjas.

"Shino, I NEED you to watch her!" I heard Neji yell.

"Can't right now." I responded, trying to knock the ninjas off their feet my sweeping my legs past theirs.

As I jumped to my feet, the four ninjas went over and joined four that Neji had been fighting. I went over to where Neji was protecting Ito and stood there with him.

"Take a breath!" Neji yelled at Ito.

She finally stopped screaming.

It gave me a moment to clear my head. "What are they doing?" I said, referring to the eight ninjas that were now performing a seal I didn't know.

"I wish I knew."Neji replied.

"Don't let them kill me!!" Ito shrieked, grabbing Neji and shaking him.

"Stop doing that!" Neji said angrily, handling that better than I would have.

"Neji, you take Ito to the village and I'll stay here to distract the ninjas." I said finally.

"No." He said unreasonably. "YOU take Ito to the village. It's easier for me to fend off a group of ninjas than it is for you."

Where did he get an assumption like that? "How do you know something like that?" I said.

"Experience." He replied.

As if he's ever REALLY seen me fight. "If we can't come to an agreement, we'll both have to stay here and fight." I said.

"Right." Neji said. "And YOU protect the girl."

"No, YOU protect her." I said, getting a little annoyed.

"SOMEBODY protect me!" wailed Ito.

Suddenly, it began to get really dark. I couldn't see anything that was happening, but I knew I had to get Ito to safety since Neji wasn't going to do it. I grabbed her arm and went to take her off to a safe place before an attack could be carried out but I was pulled back by some force and then bumped heads with Neji who apparently had the same thought as I.

I fell first and Ito landed on top of me. I can only assume that Neji landed on top of the both of us because I was now stuck underneath the two of them. I struggled to get myself free, but I could hardly move my arms.

Then I felt some kind of impact. I knew Neji had been attacked on top because he suddenly jumped off—or got pulled off—the pile.

"How did you see…?!" I heard a ninja cry out.

With only Ito's weight on top of me, I was able to get out from underneath her.I summoned my bugs, knowing they'd be able to seek out the assassins in the dark. They had really only impaired themselves because now they did not know which way the ninjas were coming from.

I've never been fond of the cries for help that people yell out when they are being attacked by my bugs, but what am I supposed to do?

The sky lightened, and I could see again. The eight ninjas were out of commission, and Ito appeared unharmed.

Neji was standing a bit away with his back to us.

"I told you I could fend off a large group easily." I said, figuring he needed an explanation just in case. "Are you injured?"

"No." He said, turning around. I paused and waited a bit, hoping that maybe he just didn't consider the shuriken sticking out of his shoulder an injury because there was no way he couldn't have noticed that.

"Right, except that." I said, pointing.

"Ow." He said.

"Oh God no!!" shrieked Ito as she put a hand to her forehead and passed out.

"It's not that bad." I said, ignoring her. "You should be able to take it out."

"If I take it out now, I'll lose too much blood." Neji said. "I'll wait for the Hokage to do something about it once we get back to the village."

"So you're just going to go traveling around with a shuriken sticking out of your shoulder until then?" I said, making sure he fully understood what exactly he had just said.

He looked at me long and hard.

Almost as if I was being the irrational one.

When he so clearly was.

"Yes." He said after thinking it through, realizing that that is exactly what he had said.

"Fine." I said, looking back at Ito who was unconscious because of her own doing. "What about the girl?"

Neji looked vaguely at her.

It was finally quiet for once.

"We should have knocked her out earlier." He said. "Now we can move faster."

Move faster…hm…oh yes. That reminded me. I looked at the sky to check the time to see that much time had passed. We had likely missed the exam. "There's no point in rushing, especially with your injury." I said. "The Chuunin Exam will be over by the time we get back if we hurry or not."

"There will be other exams." Was all Neji could think of to say. I had wanted to see Kiba and Hinata fight.


	17. Haruno Sakura: A Beautiful Ninja

Haruno Sakura; 2 Years Later

Age 14

-A Beautiful Ninja-

Today, I wasn't a ninja. Today, I was the object of Sasuke's affection.

So I spent more time than usual making myself look beautiful. I put on my most expensive make-up and dressed up in my best outfit.

I looked at the clock. There was only an hour before the tournament started. I wanted to make sure to get there early so I could get a good seat where I could clearly see Sasuke fight.

I heard a knock at the door.

"Sakura!" I heard my mother call.

"What is it mom?" said with an exasperated sigh.

"Your friend is here!" she said.

I went down the stairs to see Tenten standing there.

"Oh, hi Tenten!" I said. "What's up?"

I looked at my mom.

"Um… you can leave." I said.

"Oh right." Said my mom, as she hurried away.

"So anyway?" I said, turning back to Tenten.

"I was just on my way to the tournament." She said. "Do you want to walk together?"

"Absolutely!" I said. "Let's go visit Sasuke before the tournament begins!"

"Oh, I was going to go and visit Lee anyway!" Tenten said.

"Oh right!" I said. "I want to visit Lee too!"

The two of us left my house and started our way to the stadium area where the fights were going to be held. Both Sasuke and Naruto were in the tournament this year. I didn't mind that I wasn't involved because I wasn't ready to be a chuunin anyway.

I knew Sasuke was going to win.

"Did you know that Sasuke and Lee are the two that are predicted to be in the finals of the tournament?" Tenten said.

"Yes!" I said. "Did you read the program?"

"Yeah!" Tenten answered. "I bet that gave Lee a big head."

"Probably." I laughed, knowing Lee.

Speaking of Lee, there he was.

He and his teacher were currently engaged in one of their crazy rituals of love that I had no idea how to break up.

I looked at Tenten who nodded.

"Um—" she said.

That immediately caught their attention. Well, I guess it wasn't very hard to break up after all.

"Hi Tenten!" Lee said happily. "Hi Sakura!"

"Hi!" said Tenten. "We just came by to wish you luck!"

"We'll be watching from the stands the whole time!" I said. I looked around for any sign of Sasuke. "Do you know where Sasuke is?"

"No." Lee replied.

"Oh that's okay!" I said. If Sasuke wasn't there, then there was no reason for us to hang around any longer than we had to. And we didn't have to hang out anymore. "Come on, Tenten! Let's get good seats!"

"Wait, wait!" Lee called. "Tenten, is Neji coming to watch?"

"Oh no, Neji's away on a mission." Tenten answered. "I thought you knew!"

"That's right!" said Lee.

"Come on!" I said to Tenten. If I didn't get a good seat for the tournament, I didn't know what I'd do.

We sat down; Front row!!

"Neji's away on an B-rank mission with another chuunin." Said Tenten.

I didn't care at all about Neji or his B-rank mission with another chuunin. But I guess she thought that I wanted to know since Lee had brought it up while I had been there. But I had no interest.

"I think the other chuunin might be Shino…" Tenten continued.

I honestly didn't want to hear anything about it. So I only nodded and tried to give subtle hints that I didn't care.

"I wonder what sort of mission it is…" she said.

"Tenten, stop talking obsessively about Neji." I said finally, unable to listen to her constant babbling anymore.

"I'm not talking obsessively about Neji!" she argued, looking embarrassed. She obviously liked him, but if I said anything then she'd only want to talk about him MORE so I just dropped the subject.

"SAKURA!" I heard. I looked up to see Naruto running towards me. I rolled my eyes and was tempted to hide from him, but that would have been pointless since he had already seen me.

I then remembered that I had told him I would walk to the tournament with him. I hadn't meant it when I said it, though. I was just trying to get him to go away since he was annoying me so much. I guess he was going to yell at me for standing him up.

Instead, he sounded excited. "You got a great seat!! You'll really be able to see me fight from here!"

He just doesn't get it. I had come to the tournament for one purpose and one purpose only. To watch Sasuke and hope he saw me being impressed by his skills. Also to see my friends, but mostly for Sasuke. "Naruto, I came to watch SASUKE fight." I told him flatly. "And Lee, Ino and Hinata because they're my friends. Pretty much everyone except you."

"Aren't _I _your friend?" Naruto asked.

"Naruto…you'll never understand." I said with a shake of my head. It was true. He never would understand.

So, Tenten and I both mutually decided to say no more to Naruto and he eventually felt so awkward that he left.

"Naruto is SO annoying." I said finally once he was gone. I didn't want her to think that I liked him or anything.

"I guess." Tenten said.

"Oh look!" I exclaimed. "Sasuke's fight is starting!"

Sasuke and a kid I didn't know came out to fight. Sasuke looked so beautiful and wonderful while the kid from the other village seemed to be the ugliest thing known to creation, especially when standing up next to someone like Sasuke.

"Ew…that kid is really ugly…" I said to Tenten.

"Yeah." Tenten said. "But he might still be a good ninja."

He didn't turn out to be a good ninja. In only a few minutes, he was defeated by Sasuke.

"I stand corrected." Tenten said.

"Sasuke is just so AWESOME!" I said, bouncing in my seat. "YAY SASUKE!! LOOK UP HERE!!"

I don't think he heard me though. That was all right, though. I'd go and congratulate him the next time I saw him.

"Who's fighting next?" Tenten asked.

"I think Ino and Hinata…" I answered. "Who are you cheering for?"

"Um…" Tenten thought. "I don't see Ino around very much anymore… so I'll have to say Hinata!"

"Yeah, me too." I said. "Ino thinks she's too good for us."

"I don't know about THAT." Said Tenten.

"Ew, oh no!" I shouted when I saw Ino and Hinata come out. Ino had cut her hair so short that she looked like a boy. "WHY would she do that? She looks so ugly now! She looks like a boy!"

"I don't think she cares what she looks like anymore." Tenten said with a shrug.

"Ew." I said. "No. Ew."

"It really doesn't matter." Tenten said.

"Well, I should be HAPPY." I said. "After all, Sasuke likes long hair. If Ino has short hair then he won't like her. Which means he'll notice ME! Ino obviously wasn't thinking at all when she cut it all off. Oh, ew. She looks so stupid. Why did she do that? Ew."

Tenten was giving me a questioning look, but I decided just to ignore her.

We didn't openly and loudly cheer for Hinata. However, we both wanted her to win. But… Ino had a lot of lucky strikes and hit Hinata a bunch. She made herself look a lot better than she actually was.

I decided to say that just as the battle ended and Ino was proclaimed the winner.

"Ino's not really all that good." I said. "Hinata must have been having an off-day. When she fights Sasuke, he'll put her in her place."

"I don't know." Tenten said. "She's been training awfully hard lately."

I laughed. "Ino and I are EVEN in our skill. She's not that good. It's just that Hinata was an easy opponent."

"Whatever you say, Sakura." Said Tenten.

And what exactly was that supposed to mean? I frowned at her.

The next fight was between Kiba and some girl I didn't know. I couldn't care less about this fight so I decided to get up and go and say hi to Sasuke and wish him luck. Maybe I'd also explain to Ino that she looked like a boy while I was there. I had to be back in time for the next fight though; because it was Naruto and Lee… and I wanted to see Lee beat Naruto so bad.

When I got to where the fighters were, I was stopped at the door.

"Excuse me." I said. "I'm just going to go in and wish the fighters luck."

"Sorry, no one can come in here except the fighters." The man said.

"But I'm on the same team as Uchiha Sasuke." I said. "I have to wish him luck."

"I'm sorry but you can't come in." he said.

"It'll only be for a minute!" I argued. Suddenly, I heard the crowd cheering. I looked back at the man who stood in my path. "You're lucky that I want to watch this match or else I'd show you a thing or two! I'm a ninja you know!"

"Right." Said the man, crossing his arms.

Just because I'm beautiful, doesn't mean that I couldn't be a ninja. So I stuck my tongue out at the man and hurried back to my seat.

"It was a double knock-out." Said Tenten.

"So?" I said.

Tenten shrugged. Lee and Naruto came out onto the battle area. For some reason, the entire crowd became completely silent.

"Why is everyone so quiet?" I whispered to Tenten.

"This is the most anticipated fight in the tournament." Tenten answered quietly. "The crowd is just excited."

"Why is this fight so anticipated?" I questioned.

"Because Lee and Naruto are both really good."

"Ew, Naruto's not good."

Tenten didn't reply or acknowledge that she heard me. She was watching just as it started. Maybe she didn't like Neji… maybe it was Lee she liked. I wasn't going to bring it up though because I didn't feel like listening to Tenten talking about it.

The crowd had begun to cheer and be less afraid of making noise. So I started to cheer for Lee, but not too enthusiastically because I didn't want him to think that I loved him or anything.

While Lee's my friend, I was mostly cheering for him because I didn't want to cheer for Naruto.

"COME ON LEE!" Tenten yelled suddenly. "You can do it!"

Okay…she was being sort of annoying…

"Lee's going to take off his weights." Tenten said. "Just watch. He's getting that look."

"Oh?" I said. I didn't need Tenten giving me a play-by-play. She thought she knew everything about Lee just because they were on the same team.

Sure enough, Lee did take off his weights and the ground shook when he tossed them aside and created craters in the ground. The crowd cheered louder than ever when he did this.

"See?" said Tenten. "I told you he would."

"I didn't say you were wrong." I said under my breath, but loud enough so she could hear me. She knew I was right because she didn't say anything else.

"Well, Lee beat Naruto!" said Tenten. "We knew he would!"

"Yeah." I said.

I felt as though maybe Tenten was trying to say that she had a better team than I did because her teammate had beaten my teammate. Should it have mattered to me? After all, I had been openly cheering for HER teammate so I should have just agreed. It was only NARUTO.

"And, since there was that double knockout, Lee automatically goes to the finals to fight Sasuke or Ino." Tenten said.

"Well obviously Sasuke." I said. "I mean. Come on. Ino's just Ino. Sasuke is… Sasuke."

"Yeah, that makes total sense." Said Tenten, but she was obviously just making fun of me so I turned away from her. It really DID make perfect sense.

"GO SASUKE!!" I cheered as Sasuke and Ino came out onto the field to fight. He must have heard me that time because I was practically leaning over the wall to make sure my voice carried my love to him.

Ino saw me. She must have thought she was so great just because she was fighting Sasuke. Well I didn't care because I could fight Sasuke any time I wanted since he was on my team. She had to go through a lucky chain of events that led her up to where she was because there was no way she'd be able to get there on her own merits.

They began fighting.

Ino was fast.

"Sasuke's letting up on her." I told Tenten.

But Ino hit Sasuke a few times.

"Guys always let up on girls." I said to Tenten.

Sasuke did hit Ino in return. He also used his fire attacks, something he never used on me.

"He's just doing it for the crowd so everyone can see what a good ninja he is." I said.

"Sakura, could you stop?" Tenten said.

"Stop what?" I asked.

"Trying to justify why Ino is doing a good job." She answered. "Ino has been working really hard and if you put in about half as much effort as she did, maybe you'd notice."

My jaw hit the floor as Tenten went back to watching the fight. How DARE she say something like that to me! What had I done to her? She was acting as though I was being mean to her all day, which I wasn't.

I expressed my disapproval of her comment by crossing my arms and not talking to her anymore.

"When is this fight going to be over?" I said to myself. "Why doesn't Sasuke just beat her?"

"Maybe he can't beat her." Said Tenten.

"I wasn't talking to _you_." I said.

When Sasuke finally DID beat Ino, I was happy. But as the medical ninjas came on to cart her away, she stayed behind and talked to Sasuke. She started blushing. She better not had said anything to him about me, unless it was something good.

"What is she saying?!" I demanded finally when they didn't stop talking right out there in front of everyone.

Tenten didn't answer.

"Well?" I said.

"I thought you weren't talking to me." Tenten said.

"I'm NOT!" I said with an exasperated sigh as I stood up. "Tenten, you are being really mean for no reason. I'm going to go and sit someplace else to watch Lee and Sasuke fight!"

"Whatever." Said Tenten.

I stomped away. I decided that Tenten wasn't my friend anymore. And Ino wasn't my friend anymore either because of how she had flirted so shamelessly with Sasuke out in front of everyone.

I couldn't find a place to sit that was as good as the one I had found with Tenten. So I only ended up standing in the way back, waiting for the next fight to start. I wanted to go down and wish Sasuke good luck, but I didn't want to have to deal with Lee being in love with me, so I waited instead.

I was going to go down and see Sasuke after he had won. Then I would take him out to eat and tell him that I had been rooting for him the whole time and that I knew he would win.

"That blond kid who fought the Uchiha—man, he was good!" I heard someone say as they passed me.

"I know!" said another. "He's definitely going to become a chuunin!"

"It's a SHE!" I interrupted, and the two men jumped in surprise. "And she's my equal! If I'm not a chuunin then neither is she!"


	18. Rock Lee: Most Anticipated Fighter

Rock Lee; 2 Years Later

Age 15

-Most Anticipated Fighter-

"LEE!!! LISTEN UP!!!"

"YES GAI!!"

We were standing outside the tournament stadium, Gai and I. He was giving me a pep talk in order to hype me up for the exam. I had made it to the chuunin exam tournament and I was excited to prove myself. I got to fight Naruto in the first fight and, if I was successful all the way through the tournament, I had a chance of fighting Sasuke if HE was successful!

"Listen carefully now…" Gai said dramatically.

I hung on his words.

"Yes Gai?" I led when he didn't say anything for a moment.

"Whether you become a chuunin or not, remember this and only this;" Gai began.

It was something important so I whipped out a notepad to take a memo.

"There's always NEXT TIME!!!" Gai said, giving me the thumbs ups as his teeth sparkled in the sun.

I quickly scribed down his words of wisdom.

"Gai, you are so wise!!" I said after I had written it and let it process.

"In addition," he continued. "We all know in our hearts that you are wonderful ninja so whether you become a chuunin in this exam or the next exam or the next exam or the next exam… we will still share the same heart of true youthfulness!!"

"YES!!!" I yelled, not even able to contain my excitement. "GAI, I WILL LIVE BY YOUR WORDS!!!"

"Um—" I heard.

We both turned around to see Tenten and Sakura there.

"Hi Tenten!" I greeted her. "Hi Sakura!"

"Hi!" said Tenten. "We just came by to wish you luck!"

"We'll be watching from the stands the whole time!" Sakura added.

Ahhh!! Sakura was going to be watching ME!!

"Do you know where Sasuke is?" Sakura asked.

My heart fell. "No." I replied.

"Oh that's okay!" said Sakura. "Come on, Tenten! Let's get good seats!"

"Wait, wait!" I called. "Tenten, is Neji coming to watch?"

"Oh no, Neji's away on a mission." Tenten answered. "I thought you knew!"

That's right. I DID know that. "That's right!" I said, trying not to be upset. Even though Neji obviously didn't like me all that much, I still wanted him to see how much I had progressed in the year he had neglected to show up once for training. Maybe, if he saw how good I had gotten, he might reevaluate his declaration to never fight me again. But I'd just show him my chuunin vest when he returned. There was no way he'd be able to turn me down. For a fight, that is.

Tenten and Sakura then ran off. Neither of them had done too well in the preliminaries. In fact, I had been the one who knocked Tenten out. Oh, what a dilemma that was!

"Lee, point your youthful heart in the direction of the sun!" Gai said suddenly. "March into that exam with full confidence for you will most certainly rise triumphant!"

"I am not worthy!!!" I exclaimed, bowing at Gai's feet. I looked up and saw that he was no longer there. Gai works in such mysterious ways!!

I ran into the stadium where all the chuunin hopefuls were already waiting. I looked the tournament schedule over and over again and was very anxious to fight. How unlucky I was to be scheduled in the last bracket!

Sasuke and a kid from the Mist Village fought first. I don't think Sasuke had any trouble fighting the kid because he didn't even activate his Sharingan.

I knew Sasuke would be fine and make it to the finals. Part of my motivation to reach the finals was to get the opportunity to fight Sasuke in an arranged match!!

"Hey Lee!!" I heard Naruto yell.

"Naruto!!" I exclaimed. "We are to fight each other in the first round!! I can't wait to begin!!"

"Yeah right, Lee!" said Naruto. "I bet you're shaking in your boots because you know I'll beat you!"

I was, at first, offended. But then I remembered Naruto's overactive imagination and that he tended to say things that he didn't mean.

"Oh, all right Naruto." I said, shaking it off.

He was clearly upset about something else and was merely taking it out on me.

Sasuke finished his round as the winner. NO ONE was surprised. I watched as Neji's cousin, Hinata, got up to go out for the next fight. I was glad she was in the tournament this year because she didn't have Neji to keep her from it like the past two times. Her opponent was some blond kid that I don't think I'd ever seen before, but he was wearing a Leaf bandana. Perhaps I had been too absorbed in my training lately that I neglected to socialize anymore!

Naruto looked like he was ready to explode again at any minute and then he caught Sasuke sitting by himself in the other side of the room. He decided that he was going to stop over and scream at Sasuke as if he had even done anything to him. Recently.

Sasuke, of course, only waved Naruto off like I had.

I decided to inform Sasuke that he would be fighting me in the finals so he should start thinking about how he would go about defeating me. What can I say? I'm a nice guy!!

"Sasuke!!" I said, running over. "Promise you'll save the finals for your fight with ME!!"

"I'M fighting Sasuke in the finals!!" said Naruto.

"I thought we all mutually decided that _I _was going to fight Sasuke in the finals." Kiba said randomly.

"You're ALL wrong because _I _will fight Sasuke!" said a girl I didn't know. I had accidentally started an argument! So, as they all continued to fight over who would fight Sasuke, I decided to step back and stay out of it.

I looked over to see that the kid I didn't know had defeated Hinata.

"Nice job!" said the girl I didn't know to the boy I didn't know.

"Thanks!" said the boy I didn't know.

"I hope I can fight you later on!" the girl I didn't know continued.

"Hey!" said Kiba. "You're fighting ME next and I'm going to beat you!"

Kiba and the girl I didn't know went into the arena.

"Sasuke, I am really excited to fight against you." The boy I didn't know said to Sasuke. "I think it'll be enthralling!"

How amazingly feminine and familiar the boy I didn't know sounded!

I didn't care much about the fight between the girl I didn't know and Kiba, so I picked up the program for the day.

"_The finals are predicted to pitch fifteen-year-old Rock Lee and fourteen-year-old Uchiha Sasuke against each other." _I read to myself._ "Both are veterans of the Chuunin Exam and performed excellently in their previous attempts. The two gifted young ninjas are both expected to be promoted immediately following the tournament's end but it's anybody's game! People are expected to come from behind all the time. Another widely anticipated match is located, surprisingly enough, in the first round with, once again, Rock Lee and fourteen-year-old Uzumaki Naruto. You may remember Uzumaki Naruto's incredible win over fifteen-year-old Hyuuga Neji, now a chuunin, two years ago. The battle is anticipated to be extremely exciting; truly a clash between two incredible titans!"_

An incredible titan, I was called! And I was expected to be promoted!! I was so happy that I was in both the most anticipated matches of the day. So happy, that when I looked up and saw that the match between Kiba and the girl I didn't know had just ended in a tie so there was no winner, I yelled out in joy, "ALL RIGHT!! NOW I AUTOMATICALLY GET TO FIGHT SASUKE!!!"

I looked over to see that Naruto had shouted the same thing. We both frowned at each other and made our way out to the fighting arena.

The crowd was suddenly completely silent as we made our way out.

I have to admit I was bouncing happily on the inside.

"You two better not disappoint the crowd." Said the examiner.

"What do you mean?" asked Naruto. Obviously Naruto had not read the article.

"You ready?" the examiner said. "Go."

I always liked to strike first.

Strike!

Hm…Naruto has been working on his speed.

Strike!

Hm…Naruto has been working on his strength.

Strike!

Hm…Naruto has been working on his stamina.

It was time to think up a new course of action.

While I stood there thinking, Naruto did his famous Kage Bunshin no Jutsu. It's times like these that I wish I knew ninjutsu and genjutsu. It's also times like these that I wish I had a Sharingan or a Byakugan or something just because it would rule so much and give me an unfair advantage over other people who don't have that sort of special ability.

Our fight was eventful, yet repetitive. The whole concept of the Chuunin Exam was the impress the higher powers to make them promote you. So what did I have to do? I had to win. How was I going to win?

I had to take off my weights.

Naruto stopped to gather strength. During his period of rest, I bent down and removed the weights.

"I'd like to see you keep up with my speed now!" I announced, throwing them up into the air behind me, something that took a lot more UMPH than I had expected it to. The crowd oohed and ahhed, but I wasn't looking to impress the crowd. Only the Hokage.

I felt weightless, almost as if I was going to suddenly float up off my feet and fly away.

"Yeah right, Lee!" said Naruto. "Like you can beat me just by taking off a little weight!"

"A LITTLE weight, Naruto?!" I demanded, a little angry that he was trying to look down on my intense training. No one understands my methods to compensate for the fact that I can't use ninjutsu and genjutsu; something that everyone takes for granted!!

I had beaten Naruto before, so I could most certainly do it again.

As he continued to jeer at me, I moved in for the attack. He was completely unprepared as I hit him as hard as I could. I continued to pummel him with constant and consistent attacks. He was unable to defend or respond to any of my attacks.

I knew one more hit would do it. As Naruto tried to steady himself and regain his composer, I hit him so hard that he tumbled across the arena and hit the wall on the other side.

When the dust and smoke cleared, Naruto was motionless.

He wasn't going to get up again. I knew I had won.

"Winner; Rock Lee." Said the examiner.

I couldn't contain my happiness. "YES!!!" I cheered as I scanned the crowd for someone… ANYONE who could be proud of me. Ah! Sakura!! Oh, there's Gai!! And the Hokage!! WAS SHE IMPRESSED?! I DON'T KNOW!!!

I tried to act all cool as I passed by Sasuke on his way out with the boy I didn't know. They were going to have their fight and, while they did, I wanted to read more in that article.

I flipped through the pages to find where my picture and 'bio' was located. I was shocked to discover a horrible mistake in the program. "I'm not five foot TEN!!" I yelled in an appalled fashion so that everyone around would be able to fully understand the extent of my anguish. "I'm five foot ELEVEN!!! AND A HALF!!!"

I looked around the room to see that no one else was there. Maybe that was a GOOD thing…

I continued to read the program.

However, I was far too interested in checking on the fight.

Sasuke and the boy I didn't know seemed to just be throwing the same three shuriken back and forth at each other.

What an interesting battle.

I really was excited to fight Sasuke and study his techniques, but I had already religiously observed the way he fought and everything about him that I didn't think watching him play catch with a boy I didn't know was really going to help me anymore.

So I let my eyes wander to the crowd to where I had seen my beloved Sakura.

She was completely captivated by the fight. Though, I have to admit that most of the crowd was, but I got the impression that Sakura was only ever so captivated because her Sasuke was fighting. Yes, I have come to grips with reality and realized that Sakura deeply cares for Sasuke, but I would still like to be there as an option for her! I know Sasuke will NEVER accept her so when she gets rejected, I would be there.

Though I don't know WHY anyone would ever reject Sakura for she is like an angel!

No, she IS an angel!

Sasuke was the victor of the fight, eventually, but I entirely missed how it happened. The examiner stated that it would be ten minutes until the next fight began, and I eagerly awaited it.

Only a few minutes passed before Sasuke was back in the room with me. Now it was only the two of us. Because no one from the other bracket in my fight had progressed forward, the next fight would be the last fight. The last fight between ME and SASUKE!

"I can hardly wait for another eight and a half minutes!" I said as I started warming up my punches.

I was very excited. I didn't know how Sasuke managed to contain his excitement by only sitting there, thinking. I thought about the fact that maybe Sasuke resented me because I only had to fight once to get in the finals while he had to fight twice. I wonder how I would have done against that girl that I didn't know.

I looked at the program quickly.

Yatara…from the Sand Village.

"Hey Sasuke," I said, hoping to create small talk to help the time go by more quickly.

"What?" he said, looking annoyed.

"What did you think of that Yatara from the Sand Village?" I asked.

"I don't think of her."

Sasuke was so funny! I didn't know whether he was trying to be tough or serious or whatever, but he had certainly come off as funny to me.

"She was pretty." I said with a laugh. "But not like Sakura!"

"Whatever you say, Lee." Sasuke said.

Sasuke most definitely did not like Sakura. After all, there were plenty of other girls in the village that liked him. Like Ino. Speaking of Ino, it had been a long time since I had seen her last.

"So I can have her?!" I asked.

"Sure, I don't care. _I _don't want her."

"You like Ino better anyway, don't you?"

"What makes you think something like that?" he said after a long pause.

"It's just a guess." I said, realizing that I had said something that he did not want to hear.

"Did you hear that from someone?" he said, sounding more and more agitated by the second. "Did Ino tell you that? Because it's not true."

"She didn't say anything." I answered. I knew he wouldn't accept that so I had to quickly think up an excuse as to why I randomly said that. "It just kinda LOOKED like you kind of liked her."

I gave it a shrug and turned away from him, continuing to punch.

I think I had confused him.

I kept thinking of my wonderful, wonderful Sakura. I knew Sasuke would never oppose me trying to court her, but Sakura would oppose it. As much as I would like to believe that Sakura was madly in love with me and loved only me, I knew the truth. And the truth was that it was not true.

But I had to think about the CHUUNIN EXAM! Not LOVE!!

And it's a good thing I got myself into that mentality when I did because I suddenly heard the examiner call, "The Final Round will now commence! Rock Lee and Uchiha Sasuke!"

Wow!! It had been ten minutes already?!

Sasuke and I walked out into the arena. We were the predicted finalists and we had followed through with the predictions. The only thing that was left was to determine the winner. I would not lose to Sasuke. I would impress everyone and show them that hard work can conquer a genius.

"Ready?" said the examiner as the crowd fell silent and I locked eyes with Sasuke. "Go."


	19. Inuzuka Kiba: Next Time

Inuzuka Kiba; 2 Years Later

Age 14

-Next Time-

I asked Hinata yesterday if she wanted to walk with me to the Tournament and she agreed. No, it wasn't a date. We were just two teammates walking to the tournament since we were both in it.

That's right, I finally made it to the tournament.

Unfortunately for me, I've had a cold for the past few days. I wanted to do some last minute training before the tournament, but I had hardly been able to get out of bed because I felt so sick. Akamaru wasn't very nice either. He was just making fun of me the whole time for being a pussy but I am so obviously not a pussy.

"See Akamaru?" I said, showing him the program. "I'm in the program here. I'll read it to you. _Fourteen-year-old Inuzuka Kiba is a tenacious young genin from the Village of the Leaf. He's scheduled to fight against seventeen-year-old Jiyuu Yatara from the Village of the Sand. Both of these fighters are new to the Chuunin Exam so no one really knows what to expect. However, we're all rooting for the home team! _That's the only article about me though._"_

I looked at Akamaru who didn't appear to be interested.

"Hear that?" I said. "They're rooting for me!"

"How come I wasn't mentioned?" Akamaru asked.

"I don't know." I said. "I didn't write it."

"You ALWAYS take the credit for EVERYTHING!" Akamaru said.

"Akamaru, geez!" I said. "Are you on your period or something?! You've been so mean to me lately! And I even have this cold!"

Akamaru turned his head away from me. It's okay because I didn't want to talk to him anyway. I looked at the clock to see that it was time to meet up with Hinata.

"Oh, let's go." I said, though I didn't directly speak to Akamaru because I wasn't talking to him. "MOM!! I'm leaving!!"

"Good luck, Kiba!!" she called from upstairs. "I'll be watching you!!"

I shut the door behind me.

So me and Akamaru didn't walk very close to each other as we went to Hinata's house. I knocked on the door and Hinata opened it very quickly.

"Hinata, you ready to go?" I said.

"Yeah!" Hinata said, sounding excited as she stepped outside and shut the door behind her. "Are you ready to fight?"

I was going to eagerly respond, "YES! Of course!" But then I remembered that I wasn't ready to fight at all. "No, not really." Is what I REALLY said. "I've had a cold for two days! And besides, Akamaru's been being really difficult lately!"

"Have not!" Akamaru argued.

"Have to!!" I yelled back.

"Oh no." Hinata said, sounding concerned. "How are you going to be able to fight together?"

"Ask HIM!" I said, pointing at Akamaru.

We went to the stadium and waited in the overhang area. I observed my opponent, that girl from the Sand Village named Yatara. She wasn't really letting on any information.

I kinda wish I had paid attention during the preliminaries so I at least knew HOW she fought.

"Hey, Akamaru, were you paying attention during the preliminaries?" I asked, momentarily forgetting that I wasn't talking to Akamaru.

"YOU should have been paying attention." Akamaru said.

"I know that!" I said. "But you should have been paying attention too!"

"Why?" said Akamaru.

"Because you're my partner!"

"I never would have guessed by the way YOU hog all the glory!"

I didn't want to talk to him anymore. I looked at Hinata who was only kind of staring off into space.

"Hinata, I'm going to go and watch Sasuke's fight." I said.

"Okay." She nodded.

I went over to the opening where I could see Sasuke's fight. I almost missed it though since Sasuke beat his opponent from the Mist village in about a second. The rest of the village clapped and cheered, but I wasn't impressed all that much. I did give a courtesy clap though.

Some kid…oh wait. That was Ino. (She looks like a boy now.) Ino was getting up to start the match. Hinata was supposed to fight Ino. I looked over at Hinata to see that she was reading something.

"Hinata!" I yelled. "Hinata, it's your turn to fight! You don't want to be late for your own fight!"

"Oh right!" she said, putting down the program and running out as well.

I was going to watch Hinata's fight and cheer for her, but there was a little bit of downtime of the set up. So I decided to go over and join the controversy between Sasuke, Lee and Naruto.

"Hey Sasuke." Said Naruto. "You think you're SO cool just because you beat that Mist guy up! Well you're NOT!"

"Right, Naruto." Said Sasuke.

"Sasuke!!" Lee said. "Promise you'll save the finals for your fight with ME!!"

"I'M fighting Sasuke in the finals!!" said Naruto.

"I thought we all mutually decided that _I _was going to fight Sasuke in the finals." I said, only to escalate the battle for no reason whatsoever. I had no intention of actually JOINING IN on the competition of who thought they were going to fight Sasuke in the finals, I just wanted to throw a little gasoline in the fire. Why? I don't know. Just because it's fun.

I went back over to where I could see the fight as the argument got louder. I had succeeded in my mission. Yay!

Ino was beating Hinata senseless.

"GO HINATA!!" I yelled even though she was clearly already running low on stamina.

I don't think Hinata heard me because the crowd was being too loud.

"COME ON HINATA!!" I yelled through cupped hands.

She collapsed to the ground. I don't even think she had an opportunity to fight back at all.

"HINATA!!" I yelled. "YOU CAN STILL WIN!! GET UP!!"

No one else was even watching the fight.

But then the examiner ended the match and declared Ino the winner.

The medical ninjas came out to get Hinata off the field as Ino walked back into the overhang without any concern towards Hinata. She didn't even take a minute to find out if she was all right.

I hurried out to where they were putting her on a stretcher.

"Hey!" I said to the medical ninjas. "Is she okay?"

"Yeah, she'll be all right." Said one of them.

"She just got a hit on the head." Another one added.

I looked at the examiner who gave me a look. Oh yeah! I wasn't supposed to be there.

I went back to the overhang where I suddenly heard Jiyuu Yatara saying to Ino, "I hope I can fight you later on!"

She wouldn't be fighting Ino later on because _I _was going to win. And I had to make sure she knew that. "Hey!" I said. "You're fighting ME next and I'm going to beat you!"

I looked at Akamaru and gestured for him to come.

He sighed under his breath and followed after me. The three of us went out to the fighting area.

I didn't feel up to fight. My nose was stuffy and my head hurt.

"Inuzuka Kiba and Jiyuu Yatara." Said the examiner. "Go."

The fight seemed almost like a dream, as if it didn't really happen.

"Akamaru, come on!" I said. "Pick it up!"

"YOU pick it up!" said Akamaru.

"Hey!" I said. "This is no time to argue with me!"

"YOU'RE arguing with ME!" Akamaru argued. But that wasn't true. He was SO arguing with ME.

My mind suddenly wandered.

I thought; "Hey! Isn't Shino supposed to be watching the tournament? How come he didn't wish us luck before it started?"

"Because he's away on a mission you idiot." Said Akamaru.

"WHAT?!" I demanded. I knew he was away on a mission, but it just had escaped my mind. The reason I shouted was because I was pretty sure I had only thought that comment about Shino but apparently I had said it out loud.

"Will you STOP talking to that dog?!" yelled Yatara.

"What?" Akamaru and I said at the same time.

"All you're doing is arguing with that dog as if he's talking to you." Said Yatara. "Stop trying to make me think you're INSANE and let's have real fight!"

"I'm not INSANE!" I said, sounding as offended I could so that she could know the true depths of my displeasure with her comment.

That was certainly a rude thing to say. Even though Akamaru was as dumb as a stump, that didn't mean I couldn't still carry on a conversation with him. How come no one seemed to understand that? Hinata understood that. Shino understood that. Kurenai understood that. No one else really, besides my family of course.

Speaking of Hinata, I wonder if she's all right.

"Come on!" said Yatara, sounding whiny. "Fight me already!"

"Fine!" I said. "I'll show you! Come on, Akamaru!!"

"Geez Kiba…" said Akamaru. I frowned at him, but attacked Yatara anyway.

I think Yatara and I were pretty evenly matched. We took turns hitting each other and Akamaru did pretty much absolutely nothing to help. Under normal circumstances, I would have been able to beat her so easily but I just couldn't focus with Akamaru being difficult and this cold bothering me.

The next thing I knew, I was looking up at Hinata's face.

Where was I? How had I got there?

These thoughts entered my head at first, but then I remembered that I would have to be polite and say hi to Hinata.

"Oh…hey Hinata." I said, sitting up as well. It was embarrassing to be lying down on a bed. I guess I was in the medical area. I saw Yatara over on another bed. Well, at least I regained consciousness before her.

"Kiba, you shouldn't sit up!" Hinata said in her usual concerned voice. "You don't look well!"

"I just have a cold." I said, swinging my legs off the bed.

Hinata looked down and appeared to very sorry. Just when I was about to question why she was upset, she said, "I'm sorry I missed your fight."

Hinata! She was so funny sometimes. To think I'd get upset about something like that. She was acting as though that sort of thing actually mattered a lot to me.

"Don't worry about it, Hinata." I assured her. "You didn't miss anything good. Actually, I'm kind of glad you missed it since it's kind of embarrassing."

"Oh, okay." She said, looking relieved.

I was about to suggest that we watch the rest of the tournament when the door to the medical place swung open. I saw my mother standing there and immediately knew what was coming.

"KIBA!!!" she shouted, running over. All the dogs came over as well.

"H-hi mom…" I said, waving slightly, but she ambushed me, checking my arms for injuries.

"Oh Kiba…" she said. "I never should have let you in the exam while you were sick! I should have been a better mother and realized that you were not fit enough to fight in the exam! What did I do wrong?"

"Mom, it's all right—" I began

"Kiba, you sound congested." My mom said, whipping out a tissue and putting it up on my nose. "Now blow."

"Mom!" I said, looking over at Hinata. Thankfully, she was talking to her own father. So, while Hinata wasn't paying attention, I figured I'd humor my mother and blow my nose.

"Kiba, I want you to come straight home!" said my mom. "I'll make you some chicken noodle soup and wrap you up in some blankets and won't let you leave home until you're all better! Oh, what was I THINKING?! How could I have let you enter the exam! I knew I should have listened to your sister!"

"Mom!" I interrupted her.

"Yes Kiba?" she said as she dabbed some tears away with a tissue. I didn't even want to know if that was the same tissue I had used.

"It's okay." I said. "You don't have to worry about me. Hinata and I are going to watch the rest of the tournament!"

My mom looked over at Hinata and then back at me. She looked a little sly. "Is it a date?" she said.

"No!" I said. "We're just going to watch the tournament!"

"Okay, okay." She said in a mocking tone. "Come on, boys. We're leaving Kiba and his girlfriend alone."

"She's not my girlfriend!" I said, REALLY annoyed. She always did that.

She and all the dogs left. Hinata's father had left too. And the medical ninjas told us it was all right for us to leave as well.

"I don't see how the Sand girl won that round if I'M able to just walk out and she has to stay for medical attention." I said to her.

"I think you were knocked out before her." Hinata answered.

"I guess." I frowned. "Hey, Hinata. What did your dad say to you?"

"He said I did a good job." She answered.

"You did, Hinata!" I told her. She sort of smiled, but she looked sad.

We walked over to the stadium where we could watch just as Naruto was being carted off the field.

"Ha!" I laughed. "I'm glad Naruto didn't win. His mouth is always flapping. Don't you think, Hinata?" Hinata didn't say anything. She really did seem sad. Maybe she just wanted to go home. "Hinata, do you want me to walk you home?"

"I'd rather stay out."

"Okay! Do you want to go eat?"

"Actually…I'm not very hungry."

Um…I don't understand "Girl". The language in which everything meant the opposite in which someone was saying. Well, if that was the case then that meant Hinata actually did want to go out to eat.

"Hinata, I'm going to take you out to eat." I said, just making sure.

Sure enough, she agreed and we went out. Not… OUT as in a date… but just out to a restaurant.

A waiter came over.

"And what does the little couple want?" he asked.

"Oh, we're not a couple—" I said. Why does EVERYONE say that?!

"--Not together—" Hinata said frantically.

Hinata smiled at me. I smiled too.

"Okay…just friends then." The waiter said.

"Yeah." I said. "We're on the same team."

"Oh, teammates." said the waiter. "What'll you have?"

After the waiter took our orders, he left.

It was a little awkward. "Hinata, isn't that funny?" I said, trying to laugh but it was hard. "That waiter thought we were a couple!"

"I know!" Hinata said. "Imagine that!"

"That would be weird!" I said, not knowing how to continue. "I mean… yeah, that would definitely be weird!"

"Too weird!" Hinata said. I reached for my water but bumped Hinata's hand and spilled my water all over her.

"Oh…I'm sorry!" I said, grabbing a napkin.

"It's all right!" Hinata answered. "It's only water."

I took the napkin over to her. When we were twelve, it was easy to clean each other up when we spilled water on each other. But suddenly… we were fourteen. And it was weird to touch her.

"Here…" I said, handing it to her. "You can uh… dry off a little bit with that."

"Oh, okay." Hinata said.

We were moved to a new table.

"Kiba…" she said.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"Do you think that either of us will become chuunins?" she said.

What a question! Time for a candid answer…hm…maybe I'd just say the truth. That's all Hinata wants to hear. "Not today, Hinata." I said. "And not tomorrow. Not the day after or the week after or even a month from now. But I have a good feeling about next year."

"Why?" she asked.

"Because I'm going to train harder." I replied. "And I know you will too."

Hinata nodded and smiled. And for the first time that day, I don't think it was a forced smile.


	20. Yamanaka Ino: He Likes Short Hair

Yamanaka Ino; 2 Years Later

Age 14

-He Likes Short Hair-

The morning of the Chuunin Exam.

I knew this day would come, but I figured I'd be more ready than this. I looked at myself in the mirror and grabbed a pair of scissors. It had to be done if I was going to be a great ninja.

I cut as much hair off as I could. I wanted to keep it all out of my eyes and not worry about it. It put the golden strings into a plastic bag and tucked it under my bed. I loved my hair long but that's what had to be done.

I went downstairs, knowing full well that my mom would throw a fit once she saw that I had cut my hair again.

"Ino!" said my mom. "You cut your hair again! Why?!"

"I just did mom!" I said with an exasperated sigh. "It gets in the way! Don't worry, though! Hair grows back!"

"You're not LETTING it grow back!" my mom exclaimed unhappily.

My dad only looked at me with one eye over his newspaper.

"I'm leaving now." I said, going to the door. "I have to go to the exam."

"We'll be there." My dad said. "We'll walk down with you."

"No, I want to go alone." I said, opening the door. I didn't let them respond and shut the door behind me. I wasn't intentionally alienating myself from my parents, but they did have a hand in holding me back by babying me as their only daughter.

I hadn't planned on bumping into Sasuke that morning. But I saw him in front of me, walking slowly. At my pace, I was probably going to catch up with him in a few minutes, but I didn't want to look like I was trying to creep up on him. So, after much consideration and evaluation of consequences, I finally yelled out, "Hey Sasuke!!"

Sasuke turned around. He saw me and I think, at first, looked surprised. I guess my appearance shocked him at first.

Finally, he said, "Hi Ino." That had been the best response I had ever gotten from Sasuke. Maybe I had confused him enough to make him respond politely like that.

I didn't know what else to say so I only caught up with him and started to walk. I assumed that he didn't mind because he didn't say anything about me walking next to him and didn't speed up or slow down at all. We walked together for a little while.

I thought maybe I should say something. "Sasuke, maybe we'll fight each other in the tournament!" I tried.

"Maybe."

"All I have to do is win my fight against Hinata and I KNOW you'll win your first fight!" I continued. "It'll be so fun if we get to fight each other!"

"Yeah." He replied. "Right."

I got the impression that Sasuke didn't want to have any small talk. So I promptly shut my mouth and we continued silently all the way to the stadium. We were one of the last ones to arrive, but we weren't late.

Sasuke's fight was first. I wished him luck, but I didn't worry about him at all. He was fighting against some kid from the Mist Village who hadn't done anything impressive in the preliminaries and was just in the tournament because his opponent had been weaker than him. Actually, now that I think about it, I think his opponent was Sakura…

I watched Sasuke's fight. He fought with much speed and precision, and he hadn't even activated his Sharingan. I didn't expect anything less from him. After all, he as the famous Uchiha Sasuke.

I saw Hinata standing by herself. I was fighting her in the first round, so I figured I'd go over and say hi.

"Oh!" Hinata said before I even greeted her. "Hi Ino! I hardly recognized you at first. You cut your hair a lot shorter."

"Yeah…" I said, feeling as though I was going to have to say that a lot today. "It got in the way…"

"We're going to be fighting each other in the first round!" Hinata said.

"Yeah, I know!" I smiled. Hinata's sweet and stuff, but I had read the program of the tournament and she was expected to win our round so I had to do my part to show everyone that I was better than her, even though we used to kind of be friends. "I'm not going to go easy on you, though! Have you read the program? You're the predicted winner of our fight?"

"Me?" Hinata said, looking nervous.

"Don't worry about it though." I laughed, noticing she was upset to hear that since she obviously hadn't read the program yet. "But just so you know…"

I smiled.

"I'm going to prove everyone wrong!"

That's when Sasuke returned, the obvious winner.

"Oh wow, Uchiha Sasuke, your name has gotten all the way to my village and I have to say you certainly live up to it and I'm really surprised that you're not already a chuunin and I have to say that you are really really cool and strong too!!" a girl from the Sand village screamed.

I shook my head at her. I could remember when I was like her. And I knew Sasuke did not respond to comments like that, and he didn't.

He suddenly looked at me. "Ino, you're up next, right?" he asked.

I was surprised. "Yeah, I am!" I said.

Hinata and I went out together. I didn't want to hurt her, but I couldn't let up on her just because she was weaker than I was. If that was the case, then the weak would be promoted and the strong would be held back. It was now time to show everyone that I am a good ninja too.

"Yamanaka Ino and Hyuuga Hinata." The examiner said. Hinata flinched and looked at the crowd. She struck a timid battle pose. I knew this would be a lot easier than I originally thought.

The moment I heard the examiner say, "Go," I jumped on her. I attacked her as quickly and consistently as I possibly could so I wouldn't give her any time to do her special chakra based Hyuuga attacks.

It seemed to be working because Hinata was letting out a yelp every now and then. As sorry as I felt to beat Hinata so badly and so easily, I knew it had to be done. After all, if I beat Hinata, then I would be Sasuke's next opponent in the following round.

"Winner; Yamanaka Ino."

The medical ninjas took Hinata away. I tried not to be affected by it, and I also tried not to look at the Hokage. If I looked at the Hokage, then it would look like I was desperately seeking approval and that's a sign of weakness. So I took myself back over to the overhang where everyone else was waiting.

"Nice job!" said the Sand girl.

I looked at her. That was nice! "Thanks!" I said.

"I hope I can fight you later on!" the Sand girl continued.

I was going to respond, but I was interrupted by Kiba who had something to say on the matter. "Hey! You're fighting ME next and I'm going to beat you!"

With that, the two of them left.

I looked at Sasuke who was still sitting in the same spot. Did he even watch my fight? Did he know I was going to fight him in the next round?

"Sasuke, I am really excited to fight against you." I said, sitting down right next to him. "I think it'll be enthralling!"

He gave a slight roll of the eyes and didn't respond. I guess that comment was a mistake on my part. On the bright side, he didn't get up and walk away or anything. He stayed there and allowed me to sit next to him.

I didn't want to say anything else to annoy Sasuke so I was quiet. I didn't even get a chance to watch any of the Sand girl and Kiba's fight. But when it was over, no one returned to the overhang so I assumed it had just been a double knockout.

"ALL RIGHT!!" cheered Naruto and Lee at the same time. "NOW I AUTOMATICALLY GET TO FIGHT SASUKE!!!"

I wasn't about to get offended. I know they expected Sasuke to win in his fight against me. I wanted to beat him, but I was extremely intimidated. I tried not to be because if I was then that would hinder my fighting ability, but I couldn't help it.

The two of them went out to fight so now it was only Sasuke and I. My heart was pounding up in my throat. I was so close to him that I could reach out and touch him, but I was going to keep my hands to myself.

Suddenly, he cleared his throat and stood up.

"Sasuke, are you thinking about a strategy to defeat me?" I asked him as he started to walk away. I wanted him to come back and stay.

He turned around. "No." he answered. I didn't care about what response I got, as long as he stayed.

I didn't even realize I was smiling. "Well you should." I said. "Because, otherwise, you won't be able to beat me."

"Something's different about you." He said suddenly. I looked up. I was a bit confused.

Finally, I gave my generic answer. "It's the hair." I said. "I know you like long hair better, but it was always getting in the way whenever I trained so I had to cut it."

"Whatever." He said. He turned around and watched the fight. I wondered if he was actually watching the fight or if he was just trying to not watch me. Maybe I was giving myself too much credit.

"We will now begin Round Two." I heard the examiner. "Yamanaka Ino and Uchiha Sasuke."

It was over already?! Who had won??

Lee came back into the overhang. Oh, I guess Lee had won.

I stood up and walked with Sasuke out to where the crowd could watch us. I caught sight of Sakura looked jealous, but I pretended not to see her.

"Sasuke, would you hate me if I beat you?" I asked Sasuke to help get my mind of Sakura.

"That's not an issue, so I'm not going to bother thinking about it." Sasuke said.

I'd just have to prove him wrong.

"Ready?" said the examiner. "Go."

Under normal circumstances, I think I would be worried if Sasuke used his Sharingan. But he turned on his Sharingan and I was flattered. That meant that he considered me to me a real opponent.

He came to me first and threw a punch. It was a terrible punched that he obviously had intentions to miss, though I had no idea why. He probably assumed that I was a girly girl and I wouldn't be able to take a real punch. I hit his fist to the side easily, which caught him off guard, and then went to kick him in attempt to help him realize that he didn't need to go easy on me. However, he dodged my attack.

"Sasuke, you don't have to go easy on me!" I said. "I can take a hit or two! I'm a ninja after all!"

I think he was now taking me seriously because he formed the hand seals for the Katon Housenka. I knew he planned to use it only as a distraction so I activated my speed and came up behind him before he even realized it. I went to hit him, but he ducked almost as if he knew I would do that. He went to counter attack me, but I sped away once again.

He was looking around for me, so I figured I'd use an advanced jutsu that my father taught me. "Shinranshin no Jutsu!!" I yelled.

Sasuke dodged on the ground and threw some shuriken at me. Three, total. I caught all three of them and threw them right back as he was in the middle of an attack.

He caught them and threw them right back at me.

He continued to attack me and I attacked him right back. The crowd was mostly cheering for him, but I wasn't letting it put me down. He was expected to win.

I would like to say that I lost my balance in the middle of performing a difficult jutsu, but I tripped on just a tuft of grass. And, in the split second it took me to recover, Sasuke formed a hand seal and yelled out, "Shinranshin no Jutsu!"

I didn't have time to move. I suddenly lost control of my body. I don't believe Sasuke knew what attack it was since he had obviously just copied it from me. He didn't do anything so the two of us just stood there. I would have liked to attack him while he stood there trying to figure out what the jutsu was, but I couldn't.

"Winner; Uchiha Sasuke." Said the examiner.

"What?" I said as I dropped to the ground, realizing that Sasuke had let go of the jutsu.

"It's over?" Sasuke said.

"Oh…" I said once it set in that I had lost the fight. "I was hoping to win…"

"The final round will begin in ten minutes." The examiner said. He had probably assumed that I was unable to fight anymore. He probably knew what the jutsu was and figured that Sasuke had practically won. But, in my opinion, he had called the fight a little early.

The medical ninjas came out.

"I don't need it." I said.

"You have to come to the medical building." Said the ninja.

"No, I don't need to go to the medical place!" I said as I stood up to show them I was fine. I looked at Sasuke and knew that I had to congratulate him and not be a sore loser. "Nice job, Sasuke! I don't know why I ever thought I could beat you."

"You're a good fighter, Ino." He said. "You have an even blend of ninjutsu and taijutsu." My heart went aflutter.

"I guess I have to work on genjutsu then…" was all I heard myself saying. I pushed some hair out of my eyes. I guess I missed a few strands…

"Your hair looks better short." Sasuke said.

I felt my face get very hot. "Really?" I said, feeling my girlish emotions all fly back into me at once. "I thought you liked long hair."

Sasuke didn't look away, he only shook his head.

All this time, short hair is what he liked.

I felt very happy and very relieved, but also very disappointed as well.

Then I started to feel pain in my arms and legs. Sasuke had landed many more attacks on me than I had thought. I looked back at the medical ninjas who were still waiting for me. "Actually, I think I do have to go." I said.

I didn't get on a stretcher or anything. They just took me over to the medical place where I sat up on a bed to get tended to. I was sad that Sasuke had beaten me, but I felt as though it was worth it because of what he had said to me.

"_Your hair looks better short,"_ he had said.

Which meant…he had noticed me when my hair was long too.

Was that too much to hope for?

Was I looking too much into just a little comment?

I knew I wanted to watch the finals. I wanted the medical ninjas to hurry up so I could go and watch and root for Sasuke.

I knew he'd win, though. Sasuke is an excellent ninja and deserves to be a chuunin. He deserved it two years ago and, as I look back on it, even I get a little angry that he didn't become one then and I'm not even him so I can only imagine how he felt about it.

I sighed. Maybe I wasn't in as much pain as I had thought.

"Hi Ino!" I heard.

I searched the room for the person who had called me. Then I saw Chouji coming over to me. I was happy to see him and glad that he had come to the tournament to watch me.

But I was even happier that he had come to the medical tent to make sure I was all right. That was more than big-shot jounin Shikamaru was going to do, after all.

"Oh, hey Chouji!" I smiled.

"You fought really well!" Chouji said. "I heard a few guys talking about how you were more impressive than Sasuke!"

He was obviously just trying to make me feel better. And, as much as I appreciated it, I didn't need to hear something like that. "I don't know about that." I said.

"What's wrong?" Chouji asked. "You did great!"

"I was hoping to win." I answered, feeling a rant suddenly coming on. "If I had won, no one… not even Sasuke would be able to deny that I am a good ninja. And maybe, if I had won, Sasuke would have realized that I'm doing this all for him so that I'll grow up to be the woman he'll marry!"

"Ino, you should do it for yourself, not Sasuke!" Chouji said.

I shook my head slightly. Chouji had no idea what it was like to be so deeply in love with a man that you'd do anything to make him happy. "Chouji, you'll understand once you find a woman you love." I said.

"I guess I will." Chouji said with a shrug.

In the distance, I heard the crowd cheer. Sasuke's fight was starting.


	21. Hyuuga Neji: A Disagreeable Partner

Hyuuga Neji; 2 Years Later

Age 15

-A Disagreeable Partner-

Aburame Shino and I were coming close to finishing up our mission. We had to take the sixteen-year-old daughter of the new Kazekage from the Village of the Sand to the Village of the Leaf.

The Kazekage was already at our village to watch the Chuunin Exam Tournament and wished for his daughter to meet up with him there. That's why Shino and I were hired. However, when we were given the assignment, I was expecting it to be easy. She was the daughter of a Kage, after all, so I expected her to at least know a bit of what it was to be a ninja but she had absolutely no training in the ninja fields whatsoever.

Her name was Ito. And I hate her.

"How much FURTHER?!" screamed Ito as she nearly stumbled on a tree branch that she hadn't bothered to step over.

"We already told you that we'd be there in another hour." I said, stopping and turning around. "But not if we keep stopping like this."

"I'm going to tell my father on you two!" she cried.

"What for?" I said. "We're only doing our job."

"You're RUSHING me!" she said.

"You're the one who wants to get there faster." I pointed out.

"Neji, don't bother." Said Shino. "Let's just go."

As much as I hated the thought of it, we probably did have to slow down. If she was going to be this annoying and argumentative then there was no sense in us having a fast pace. "We should slow down just a bit." I said.

"No." said Shino. "We only have an hour and half until the Exam starts."

"My father said I didn't have to be there for that!" Ito whined.

"But _I _want to be there for that." Shino said. "Both of my former teammates are in it and I want to see their fights."

"I don't care!" she yelled. "I'm not going to kill myself tromping through some kind of jungle just so you can watch your friends beat each other up! I'm RESTING!" With that, she plopped down on the ground and didn't look like she was going to budge.

"There will be other exams to watch." I told Shino.

Shino looked as angry as Shino can look. I don't know why he was bothering to hurry like that. It was likely that his teammates wouldn't even win their first fight with stronger contenders in the tournament. I mean, the only reason why Hinata had made it into the tournament was because of some fluke. She had no right to be there.

Shino was a difficult person to work with. He wanted to do everything on his own and refused to take orders from anyone. He tried to get off saying that he was a better ninja than I even though I had beaten him in the Chuunin Exam tournament last year.

Ito was letting out exasperated groans and moans all over the place. I stood near her just in case as Shino paced.

"I'm so angry at my father." She groaned. "He should have made this an A-rank mission so you guys would send five jounin ninjas instead of just two pathetic chuunins."

I think Shino and I both whipped our heads around to glare at her after that comment.

"'Pathetic' is not the—" I began in our—or at least MY—defense. But I was unable to get much further because I caught sight of a figure up in the trees above us. He was making his move to attack as he threw some shuriken down right towards Ito.

I grabbed a shuriken from my own pouch and deflected the weapons. As soon as Ito realized what was going on, she began to loudly shriek.

"Shut her up!" I commanded Shino as I bounded off the tree and upwards into the branches where the assailant was. It was impossible for him to hide from me as soon as I activated my Byakugan and began to track him.

I saw him jumping from branch to branch in order to escape. He couldn't attack us and then expect to get away without being opposed so I threw the shuriken in his direction and hit him square in the back. It knocked him off balance and he fell from the trees.

It had to be a trap to make me think he was a lower level ninja than he actually was. If he had the ability to sneak up on us entirely undetected, then allowing a shuriken to strike him in the back was close to unfathomable. I cautiously approached the spot where he had fallen to find that he wasn't there. I searched the area and then saw him dodge behind one of the trees, unwounded.

I threw some more shuriken to lure him out.

Suddenly, another came up from behind me at the exact moment the first jumped out from the tree.

I performed the Heavenly Spin, which clearly surprised them. This meant that they were not members from our own village or else they would have known I was a Hyuuga and that he possessed such ability.

After being thrown back by the force of my chakra, they bounded up into the trees again to escape. I jumped up as well and looked around. Even with my Byakugan, they had gone too far.

"That's impossible." I said out loud, though only to myself. "How could they have gotten that far away in such a short time?"

I stole a quick glance back at Ito and Shino. Shino was fending off two more attackers reasonably easily as Ito continued to shriek.

There was nothing more here, so I figured I'd make my way back to where they were to give Shino a hand.

By the time I reached them, Shino already had the attackers on the run.

"What happened?" he said, referring to the fact that I had chased away my own two attackers.

"There were two of them." I replied. "But they disappeared. And you?"

"The same." He answered. "I'm thinking jounin assassins from the Sand Village."

"Assassinate me?!" gasped Ito, finally taking a breath. "But WHY?"

I could see why they'd want to.

"I doubt they were trying to kill her." I said. "They probably wanted to take her hostage to use against the Kazekage. It's best we get her back to the village as soon as possible."

"I agree." Shino said.

I went over to Ito and grabbed her by the arm, pulling her up to her feet.

"Hey!" she yelled. "Don't be so rough!"

"We have to go now." I said. "Unless you want to be killed."

"You just said that they weren't trying to kill me!" she whimpered.

"That is just a speculation." Shino said.

I began to pull her along. She complained constantly but there was nothing she could do to break my grip from her arm. The last thing we needed was the assassins/kidnappers to return and take her from us or kill her. What would that say about us if we failed such a mission?

"You know, I bet you guys are the types who never have any fun!" Ito said randomly as we continued to walk. "I bet all you do all day long is sit around and train!"

"How does 'sitting around' and 'training' have any correlation whatsoever?" I said without looking back.

"Do you guys even have girlfriends?" Ito said.

I wasn't even going to dignify that with an answer, and I take it that Shino wasn't going to either.

"Oh…I see." She said. "You guys are…" she paused. "Aren't you?"

"Are what?" Shino said.

"Just ignore her." I said, rolling my eyes. I had no idea what she was talking about, but surely it was a stupid teenage girl thing that didn't have the right to my time or thoughts.

"Then you guys ARE together!" she laughed.

We both stopped and turned around, staring at her.

"Or…not?" she said with a smile.

"Do me a favor and don't say anything else." I advised her.

Shino and me. What a joke.

She only let out a loud sigh. "Do you suppose those ninjas will come back to kill or abduct me?" she said as if that sort of thing happened all the time.

I hope so, was all I could think of as a response.

Instead, I said, "I hope not."

"Are you worried about me?" she said.

"No." I said. "It's just that if you die or get abducted, I lose my credibility as a ninja."

"Oh." She said, making a face.

Shino looked up at the sky. "There's still time to make it to the tournament before it starts." He said.

I almost DIDN'T want to go to the tournament. Lee was in it, but I doubted that he was going to do much better than the first round. He was fighting Naruto first and, if Naruto could beat ME, then Lee had no chance at all. Then again, he had beaten me two years ago, so maybe he had gotten weaker in that time. Whatever the case may be, Lee could not be a chuunin because he could not use ninjutsu or genjutsu. His promotion from academy student to genin was simply out of pity and that sort of action could not be taken when it came to B-rank missions he could potentially do if he were promoted to chuunin.

"I'm getting a blister!!" griped Ito.

"Get over it." I said.

"It hurts!" she said. "I can hardly walk on it!"

I shook my head in response. If only she knew REAL pain.

"Neji, don't you think it's strange that those ninjas attacked us and then disappeared so suddenly?" Shino said randomly.

"Of course." I replied.

"What if they were scouts?" he said, stopping in his tracks. "What if there is more coming to finish the job?"

"Well, hopefully they won't run away so we can finish them off this time." I answered.

"You don't have to worry about that!" came a voice as suddenly, four ninjas dropped down on us. Ito began to shriek again as I threw her behind me and blocked an attack.

"Protect her!" I ordered Shino as I kicked the ninja away and threw her at Shino. It would be easier for me to fight four ninjas than for him.

I found it quite easy to avoid their simple taijutsu attacks. After all those daily fights with Lee, my ability to dodge taijutsu had certainly increased, not that I wasn't good at it before.

"YOU protect her." Shino said and suddenly, Ito came flying back towards me.

One of the ninjas raised a sword to cut her. I derailed it from its coarse with chakra and jumped in front of her, hitting the ninja with a blow on the back.

"I'm a little busy right now!" I said, pushing her back towards Shino.

I bent over backwards to dodge an attack from one ninja and flipped off the ground to attack another. The second ninja fell on top of the first and the two of them landed in a heap.

"Likewise," Shino said, bumping Ito back at me.

I looked at the two ninjas getting up from the pile and then at the two more that were descending from above. I knocked Ito to the ground just as one of the ninjas made a swipe at her. I couldn't perform the Heavenly Spin with her at such a close range.

"Shino, I NEED you to watch her!" I said.

"Can't right now." Shino said. I looked up to see he was preoccupied with a few ninjas of his own. So we had to do this the long and hard way.

Abruptly, all the ninjas pulled back and formed in a big group. There was a total of about eight of them and they stood in a diamond shape.

I pulled Ito up to her feet.

"Take a breath!" I demanded of her.

She closed her mouth for the first time.

"What are they doing?" Shino said.

I looked at the eight ninjas as they all performed a hand seal at the same time.

"I wish I knew." I said, not recognizing the seal.

"Don't let them kill me!!" screamed Ito, grabbing my shoulders and shaking me around.

"Stop doing that!" I said, unable to focus as she shook me.

"Neji, you take Ito to the village and I'll stay here to distract the ninjas." Shino whispered.

"No." I said, not about to let a plan like that go through. "YOU take Ito to the village. It's easier for me to fend off a group of ninjas than it is for you."

Shino raised an eyebrow. "How do you know something like that?" he said.

"Experience." I answered.

Shino sighed. "If we can't come to an agreement, we'll both have to stay here and fight." He said.

"Right." I said. "And YOU protect the girl."

"No, YOU protect her." Shino said, sounding somewhat annoyed.

"SOMEBODY protect me!" wailed Ito.

It was then that I started to notice it was getting very dark. In only a short time, it was completely pitch black outside. It was probably an attempt to confuse us and catch us off guard by not being able to see, but using my Byakugan I could still see each of the attackers as they scattered. As a ninja came from above to attack us, I grabbed Ito's arm to pull her out of harm's way, but she held her ground so well that I bounced back into her. I also knocked heads with Shino.

It wasn't Ito holding her ground, it was Shino with the same idea as mine.

Shino fell first, then Ito and then I landed on top. I could clearly see the attacker coming towards me. If I dodged then he would have hit Ito so I had to block and absorb most of the blow so she wouldn't receive any injury while also not doing too much damage to myself.

I turned my body slightly to the side and felt contact right on my shoulder.

Yes, it hurt. But I wasn't going to let it keep me from completing the mission.

I jumped off Ito and Shino and hit the ninja.

"How did you see…?!" he stuttered.

I wasn't going to answer him, only attack him and all his partners until they were out of our hair for good, but they all started yelling out. There were screams of horror and pain on all sides of me and slowly, the darkness faded away and the light returned. The bodies of the eight ninjas were scattered about with black bugs crawling all over them. Eventually, their screams were silenced.

I looked at Shino who was in his fighter's stance as hundreds of bugs crawled back up his sleeves. Ito was lying on the ground with a horrified expression. Other than being shaken up and freaked out, she was unaffected.

"I told you I could fend off a large group easily." He said. "Are you injured?"

"No." I said, turning around.

"Right, except that." Shino said, pointing at my shoulder. I looked down to see a shuriken sticking out of it.

"Ow." I said. Looking at it made it hurt more.

"Oh God no!!" shrieked Ito as she put a hand to her forehead and passed out.

"It's not that bad." Shino said, disregarding Ito. "You should be able to take it out."

Yeah, that was easy for him to say.

"If I take it out now, I'll lose too much blood." I reminded him. "I'll wait for the Hokage to do something about it once we get back to the village."

"So you're just going to go traveling around with a shuriken sticking out of your shoulder until then?" Shino said skeptically.

What else was I supposed to? Take it out and then bleed to death? Removing it wouldn't make the pain go away. Besides, I had lived through MUCH more painful events so I wasn't concerned for my well being if I just had a single shuriken sticking out of my shoulder.

"Yes." I said.

"Fine." Shino said. "What about the girl?"

I looked at Ito who was not going to wake up soon.

It was finally quiet for once.

"We should have knocked her out earlier." I said, looking back at Shino. "Now we can move faster."

Shino looked back up at the sky and then at me. "There's no point in rushing, especially with your injury." He said. "The Chuunin Exam will be over by the time we get back if we hurry or not."

"There will be other exams." I told him again.


	22. Akimichi Chouji: His Predictions

Akimichi Chouji; 2 Years Later

Age 14

-His Predictions-

I was SO excited to watch the chuunin exam tournament. Not only did Shikamaru promise to watch it with me, but Ino was in the tournament! I knew she'd do well and become a chuunin.

I don't see much of either of them anymore. Shikamaru is a jounin now so he's always off on missions or working with the Hokage. The Hokage has sort of made him one of her personal slaves and makes him run a lot of errands for her. I make fun of Shikamaru a lot for it, but I'm secretly really jealous of him.

As for Ino, I never saw much of her because she tended to skip training sessions a lot. I thought maybe she was giving up on becoming a good ninja, but it turned out that she's been training on her own this entire time. She certainly did surprise me with all her new taijutsu training that was suddenly so much better than mine. She definitely dragged me through the exam leading up to the preliminaries to the point in which I was on my own. She easily fought her way through the preliminaries and rightfully deserved her spot in the tournament.

I was sitting in my seat, waiting for Shikamaru to arrive.

He was usually a little late for things, but he promised me that he'd meet me here almost an hour ago.

But I waited patiently anyway.

It wasn't that hard to wait anymore when all the fighters for the tournament came out. I recognized everyone except two people from other villages, but I felt sorry for whoever was up against Ino.

I think it was Hinata.

I looked around everywhere for Shikamaru, but he was nowhere to be found.

"I hope Shikamaru gets here soon…" I mumbled to myself. "He's going to miss the tournament…"

The predicted winners of the tournament were Lee and Sasuke. But I had a feeling that Ino was going to be in the finals too. People just didn't know her name very well.

I mean, she had only recently become such a good ninja. She didn't go on very many missions because she never showed up for training, but she was a lot better than most chuunins. Sure, it's not like I know that for a fact, but as my personal opinion.

She DID go on a B-rank mission with three chuunins, but I think it was just a learning experience for her. Besides, the mission wasn't all that hard, I heard. Someone had put it in the B-rank section because it was bordering on B and C, and they just wanted to be safe. Ino had been pretty disappointed when she got back, but I told her it was nothing to worry about. After all, they didn't normally isolate a single genin from the rest of her team to go on a mission so she should feel lucky enough for that to have happen.

I've never even seen the B-rank scroll.

"Hey Chouji," I heard a voice behind me. I turned around to see Shikamaru there.

"Shikamaru!" I said, moving over so he could sit down.

"Sorry I'm late." He said. "The Hokage wanted to talk to me about things. I have to leave after the first set of fights."

"Why?" I asked.

"The Hokage." Shikamaru answered, rolling his eyes.

He was always so vague with his answers, especially when it had something to do with the Hokage and something she wanted him to do for her. I guess learning how to answer an interrogating question was one of the first things someone had to learn as a jounin who was close to the Hokage.

Shikamaru was PRACTICALLY a special jounin, so I don't know why the Hokage didn't just make him one. Maybe it's because Shikamaru didn't want to have to deal with all that, but he pretty much dealing with it already. He was ALWAYS near the Hokage.

"Oh that's okay, Shikamaru." I said. "I don't mind."

I really did mind, but what was I supposed to say in opposition to the Hokage? I didn't want Shikamaru to get in trouble for not listening to the Hokage but I also didn't want to have to sit alone.

"Who's up first?" Shikamaru asked.

"Sasuke and that kid from the Mist village." I replied. "I don't think it'll be much competition for Sasuke, though."

"That's for sure." Shikamaru said. "It kinda makes me feel sorry for him. Then again, you have to feel sorry for anyone who's up against Sasuke."

"Shikamaru, Ino's going to have to fight Sasuke if she wins her fight." I said.

"If Ino gets beaten by someone, I'm sure she'd rather it be by Sasuke than someone else." Shikamaru said wisely.

He had a point there. I couldn't hear anything the examiner was saying from where I was, but Sasuke and the kid from the Mist Village came out to the fighting area to begin the tournament.

Shikamaru was right when he said there would be no competition. If I had blinked then I would have missed the fight because the Mist Village kid was defeated in a matter of moments. I knew Sasuke was thinking about how great he was, but I don't know how he could possibly feel satisfied after a match like that.

"Now it's Ino's fight!" I said as the medical ninjas carted the Mist kid's beaten body off the field.

"She's only up against Hinata." Shikamaru said. "She should be fine."

"I don't know, Shikamaru!" I said. "Hinata's the one who beat ME to get into the tournament after all!"

"Yeah, but didn't Ino beat that guy from the Sound Village?" Shikamaru pointed out. "She'll be fine."

The field was so far away that it was difficult to see the fights, but I could get the gist of what was going on. And, as I watched Ino and Hinata make their way onto the field, I actually almost mistook Ino for someone else after my initial glance.

"Oh…Ino cut her hair again." I noticed as she and Hinata took their fighter's stances.

She didn't really look like a she anymore. I bet a lot of people thought she was a boy since she really did look like one.

"She looks like a boy." Shikamaru sighed.

"Ino's really focused on becoming a ninja." I said. "I mean, if she's willing to cut all her hair off for it, you know she's serious."

"I guess so." Shikamaru agreed.

Ino had certainly toughened up a lot. Ino two years ago probably wouldn't have been able to fight Hinata with the intensity that I saw. Even Shikamaru looked a little surprised.

"Ino's gotten better than I thought." He said.

"I bet she could beat YOU, Shikamaru!" I said in an entirely joking manner.

But he didn't laugh.

"You know," he began. "She might actually give Sasuke a run for his money."

"I think she might be able to beat Sasuke." I said truthfully.

"This might be a little mean, but I'd love to see that just so Sasuke could be devastated." Shikamaru said.

I laughed. Shikamaru was so funny!

But the more I thought about it, the more I considered… if Ino had been in possible winning position over Sasuke, would she really defeat him? After all, she's looking to win his affection but if she beat him, she and I both knew that that would have some serious consequences on their relationship. However, I don't think there's much of a relationship to gamble with that this point.

Minutes later, Ino had won.

The crowd cheered for her.

I don't think anyone except Shikamaru and I really expected such a performance from her. I think Hinata was the popular expected winner of that fight.

This meant that Ino really DID have to fight Sasuke.

"Who do you think will be in the finals in the other bracket?" I asked, pulling out the program.

"Why don't we just take one fight at a time?" Shikamaru suggested.

"It'll probably be Lee…" I said, looking over the names. "Or Naruto… maybe…"

"Keep in mind we don't know what to expect from that girl from the Sand." Shikamaru reminded me.

"That's right!" I said. "For all we know, she could win the whole thing!"

"I wouldn't go that far." Shikamaru said.

"Yatara from the Sand Village…" I read. "She's fighting against Kiba."

Almost as soon as I had said that, both the girl from the Sand and Kiba came out to begin their fight.

I had never been a particular fan of Kiba's style of fighting but obviously it worked. After all, he was in the tournament and I wasn't, which definitely said something.

I wasn't impressed with anything the Sand girl did. But Kiba certainly seemed to be having an off day because he wasn't working with his dog well and wasn't really completing any of the seals.

"Neither of these two will become chuunins." Shikamaru said.

"What do you mean?" I asked. "How do you know?"

"They need more training." He answered.

Yatara from the Sand did end up winning, but she was unable to fight. It was pretty close to a double knockout, but I had to agree with Shikamaru. Neither fighter had done anything spectacular that would potentially impress the Hokage or the people in charge of promotions.

"I think people have been anticipating this next fight the most." Shikamaru said. "They all remember Naruto beating Neji two tournaments ago. And Lee did incredible work last time."

"How come Lee didn't become a chuunin last time anyway?" I asked.

"It's that ninjutsu genjutsu thing." He replied. "It's hard to overcome something like that."

"Well, Lee is a good fighter." I said. I saw Naruto and Lee come out into the opening where the fighting was to take place. Shikamaru was right about the crowd wanting to see this fight the most. They were all immediately silenced.

"Lee will win." Shikamaru predicted. As of right now, all of Shikamaru's predictions had been right so I got the feeling that Lee would win.

I didn't really care either way since I didn't have any sort of an attachment to Lee or Naruto. But whoever won this fight would be fighting against Ino or Sasuke in the final rounds so I knew they were both fighting hard. That was probably their main incentive to win.

The fight was pretty intense, but it was a lot of the same thing over and over. At first, I thought it could go either way.

Lee must have been thinking the same thing too because once there was a short break from the fight, he removed the weights on his legs. The damage created after he threw them suggested to me that they were even heavier than two years ago when I had first seen him take them off.

I can't say I was emotional either way when Lee won. I knew Naruto really wanted to be the Hokage someday, but I also knew Lee wanted to prove to everyone that he was a great ninja even though he couldn't use ninjutsu or genjutsu. So I guess I would have been happy for the winner and sad for the loser either way.

"Naruto won't become a chuunin." Shikamaru said.

"Why not?" I asked.

"Not enough." He answered.

Interesting. I thought Naruto had performed well. But Shikamaru used his Jounin eyes to see that wasn't so.

"Ino and Sasuke's fight is next." I said.

"Hm…" Shikamaru said out loud.

No prediction? I was amazed to see Shikamaru had no prediction for this round.

I watched as Sasuke and Ino came onto the fighting grounds. I was almost at the edge of my seat in anticipation. A lot of the crowd was interested in watching too because they all wanted to see the famous Uchiha fight… but I just wanted to watch Ino.

"GO INO!!!" I cheered.

"Chouji, she can't hear you from all the way up here." Shikamaru said.

"Maybe she can!" I said.

Shikamaru didn't respond to that.

Sasuke attacked first but Ino countered well.

From where I was sitting, I couldn't make out which hand seals they were doing, but once the field was engulfed with flames, I figured that Sasuke had used one of his fire moves that tend not to work.

Ino countered that as well with her OWN attack. Actually, it was her father's, but she had mastered it at only the age of fourteen.

Then they proceeded to throw shuriken back and forth at each other, attempting to attack while the other was distracted by catching the shuriken but both were too quick and on their guard.

"Do you think Sasuke is going easy on her?" I asked Shikamaru, trying to see over the head of the person in front of me who had decided that he needed to stand up right then and there.

"He looks like he is." Shikamaru replied. "But that could just be because Ino's gotten good."

"Do you think she can win?" I said finally.

Shikamaru watched the fight for a few moments without responding. I went back to watching the fight as well.

Suddenly, "No." he said.

She was too careless. Sasuke was famous for using your own attack against you to finish you off, and that's pretty much what he did.

The crowd erupted with cheers as the medical ninjas came trotting onto the field.

"Oh Shikamaru…do you think Ino will become a chuunin?" I said with a sigh as I looked over to where Shikamaru was only to find that he wasn't there. Then I remembered that he was supposed to go and see the Hokage at the beginning of this round. I hope I hadn't gotten him in trouble.

Ino had done really well, and spoke to Sasuke for a minute before finally going with the medical ninjas. I never thought that Sasuke really deserved her, but I was glad she seemed to be making a good impression with him.

The final match between Sasuke and Lee was scheduled to occur in just ten minute's time.

I overheard two ninjas speaking behind me.

"That was a cool fight." Said one.

"Yeah, but I was kinda hoping the blond guy would win."

"Why? That kid's the Uchiha."

"I know. But the blond guy was a better fighter."

Blond 'guy' they said.

But I was glad that the rest of the ninja world was acknowledging Ino's skill as a good ninja. I don't know if I would say she was better than Sasuke, but I don't think anyone in that crowd that day would be able to say that Ino didn't give it her all and perform to the best of her ability.

I thought maybe I'd go and visit Ino in the medical area. After all, I didn't really mind at this point whether Sasuke or Lee won so missing the final battle wouldn't affect me. After all, I didn't like sitting there all by myself.

So I got up and went off to the medical area and entered.

Plenty of people were there, but no one really took any notice to me as I went over to Ino who was being tended to by a medical ninja.

"Hi Ino!" I said.

"Oh, hey Chouji!" she said with a smile.

"You fought really well!" I complimented her. "I heard a few guys talking about how you were more impressive than Sasuke!" I chose to leave out the fact that they had referred to her as a guy.

Ino laughed a little bit, but she looked slightly sad. "I don't know about that." She said.

"What's wrong?" I asked. "You did great!"

"I was hoping to win." She said. "If I had won, no one… not even Sasuke would be able to deny that I am a good ninja. And maybe, if I had won, Sasuke would have realized that I'm doing this all for him so that I'll grow up to be the woman he'll marry!"

"Ino, you should do it for yourself, not Sasuke!" I said.

"Chouji, you'll understand once you find a woman you love." She said.

"I guess I will." I said with a shrug as I heard the crowd cheer, which signified the beginning of the final round.


	23. Hyuuga Hinata: Not Me

Hyuuga Hinata; 2 Years Later

Age 14

-Not Me-

Today was the day of the Chuunin Exam Tournament.

I have to admit, I was a little scared. I never actually expected to make it to the tournament, and I was scheduled to fight Ino in the first round. I was a little relieved that it wasn't Sasuke or something, but if I won against Ino then I would have to fight Sasuke.

I was also glad that I didn't have to fight against Kiba, since he was also in the tournament. I would hate it if I had to fight someone on my own team.

Unfortunately, Shino was away on a mission so, even though Kiba and I were in the tournament, he wouldn't be able to watch. He SAID he wanted to come and watch us, but when the Hokage wants you to go on a mission, it's not like you can turn her down.

I was mentally getting ready for the exam in my room when there was suddenly a knock at my door. It opened up and my father was standing there.

"Hinata, are you ready to go to the tournament?" he asked me.

It was then that I realized I had forgotten to tell my father that Kiba had offered to walk with me down to the tournament.

"Oh…dad…" I started. "Um…I promised Kiba I'd walk with him to the tournament…"

He looked angry. I don't think he liked it when Kiba and I walked together.

"Very well." He said. "But just remember, he's not a Hyuuga."

"Dad, it's not like that!" I insisted. And it wasn't! We were only on the same team and we were friends. But I guess it was sort of the situation with Naruto and I since I kind of liked him… though… even if Naruto ever did come around and start liking me back, my father would not approve.

Then the doorbell rang.

"That's probably him." I said quietly as I hurried past my father. I opened the door and Kiba was standing there with Akamaru next to him.

"Hinata, you ready to go?" Kiba said with an excited nod.

"Yeah!" I said as I stepped outside. "Are you ready to fight?"

"No, not really." Kiba confessed. "I've had a cold for two days! And besides, Akamaru's been being really difficult lately!"

Akamaru barked at him.

"Have to!!" he yelled.

"Oh no." I said. "How are you going to be able to fight together?"

"Ask HIM!" Kiba said.

Of all the days for him to be in a fight with Akamaru! He had to fight against a girl from the Sand Village. We didn't really know what to expect from her and I was a little worried for Kiba. But I believed he could win.

I was a bit intimidated by all the other people in the hanger area where the fighters were supposed to wait. Kiba made me feel a lot more comfortable though by hanging out with me until the tournament was scheduled to start. Even though he was arguing with Akamaru the whole time and when he wasn't doing that, he was blowing his nose, he still managed to comfort me if I started feeling nervous.

I was going to fight after Sasuke and whatever his opponent's name may be. He was fighting against a boy from the Mist Village and neither of them seemed very worried about each other. I wasn't even fighting them and I was worried.

"Hinata, I'm going to go and watch Sasuke's fight." Kiba said to me.

"Okay." I answered with a nod.

He wandered off to the opening where he could see the fight.

I stood there alone for a moment when suddenly, Ino came up to me.

"Oh!" I said. "Hi Ino! I hardly recognized you at first. You cut your hair a lot shorter."

"Yeah…" Ino said. "It got in the way…"

"We're going to be fighting each other in the first round!" I said.

"Yeah, I know!" Ino answered with a smile. "I'm not going to go easy on you, though! Have you read the program? You're the predicted winner of our fight!"

"Me?" I said, feeling nervous. People were expecting a lot out of me.

"Don't worry about it though." Ino laughed when she noticed I looked upset about learning this. "But just so you know…"

She smiled again.

"I'm going to prove everyone wrong!"

I now felt REALLY nervous. I don't know whether it was her intention to scare me out of my mind or not, but she certainly succeeded in doing so. I felt compelled to grab the program just to see if this was all true.

"_The heir to the Hyuuga Household, fourteen-year-old Hyuuga Hinata, is the favorite in her first round." _I read._ "Her tenacity as brought her to the Chuunin Exam for the first time but she is expected to prove as a worthy advisory to Uchiha Sasuke who is expected to progress all the way to the finals. Little is known about her opponent, fourteen-year-old Yamanaka Ino who tends to keep her training practice to herself but already this young blonde has participated in numerous B-rank missions. As always, we can only expect to be impressed by the skills of our young aspiring ninjas!"_

"Who writes these things?" I wondered out loud.

"Hinata!" I heard Kiba yell. I looked up. "Hinata, it's your turn to fight! You don't want to be late for your own fight!"

"Oh right!" I said, getting a little flushed.

I quickly looked behind me to see that Sasuke had won his round, just like the program had predicted. Would I fulfill the prediction for my round or was Ino going to prove everyone wrong like she said she was aiming to do? Only time would tell.

"Yamanaka Ino and Hyuuga Hinata." The examiner said. Ino looked very serious as she struck her battle pose. She looked like someone I didn't even know, especially with her short hair.

After a quick glance around in the crowd, I spotted my father and my sister in the stands. I had to make my father proud by doing well in my match. Even if I didn't win, I had to be a good opponent.

I hardly heard the examiner say, "Go," before I was ambushed by Ino's attacks. It was an uncontrollable and constant barrage of attacks that I was unable to defend myself again.

Perhaps my head was too clouded with trying to prove myself to my father and the crowd that expected me to win. Perhaps I was weak. Perhaps I didn't even belong in the Chuunin Exam Tournament.

But then it occurred to me. Perhaps it wasn't me at all.

Perhaps it was Ino.

She was very strong.

And she was not going to stop until she showed everyone that she deserved to be a chuunin.

And she did deserve it.

I opened my eyes and looked around. I wasn't outside anymore. I slowly sat up and glanced around the room to see that I was in the medical tent.

The boy from Sasuke's first fight was there.

"Um…" I said, trying to get the attention of one of the medical ninjas.

"I told you she would be fine." Said one to another. "Just a bump on the head."

"Is the match over?" I asked.

"Yeah." Said the one who had spoken before. "That kid hit you real hard."

"I want to see him fight the Uchiha." Said the other.

"That'd be a fight." Said the first.

I wondered if I should tell them that 'he' was actually a 'she'.

Then I remembered that Kiba's fight was right after mine. I didn't see Kiba or the girl he was fighting in the medical tent. "Excuse me!" I said once the two medical ninjas had started talking about how interesting it'd be to see Ino and Sasuke fight. They both looked at me and waited. "Do you know who won the fight after mine?"

"It's still going on." Said the ninja.

Then the crowd cheered.

"Oh, never mind." Said the second one. "Let's go!"

The two of them dashed out of the room to go and retrieve the loser from the match. I looked across the room at the heap that was Sasuke's former opponent. I certainly hoped Ino would be all right once she finished her fight with Sasuke.

The two medical ninjas came back with the girl from the Sand Village.

"Oh!" I said. "So Kiba won?"

But then two more came in with Kiba.

A double knock out…

"A double knock out." One of the ninjas explained to me even though I had already figured it out.

Akamaru trotted in after the ninjas and hoped up onto my bed. He jumped onto my lap and sat there, so I put a hand on his head.

"I can't believe I missed Kiba's fight!" I sighed. "I sure hope he's all right."

Akamaru barked, but it's not like I could ever understand what he's saying.

"Maybe it's better that Shino didn't come to watch us." I decided with a nod. "After all, we both lost in the first round. When HE was in the tournament, he went all the way to the finals."

I looked up to see that the medical ninjas were staring at me.

"Are you talking to that dog?" one asked finally.

I was embarrassed.

I guess I sort of was talking to Akamaru subconsciously. But it seemed so natural since Kiba did it all the time.

"Is Kiba going to be all right?" I asked, trying to change the subject.

"Yeah, he'll be fine." Said the ninja.

I put Akamaru down and jumped off the table. I went over to where Kiba was just as he rolled over and regained consciousness.

"Oh…hey Hinata." He said, sounding groggy as he sat up.

"Kiba, you shouldn't sit up!" I said. "You don't look well!"

"I just have a cold." Kiba said, swinging his legs off the side of the bed.

"I'm sorry I missed your fight." I said, looking down.

"Don't worry about it, Hinata." Said Kiba. "You didn't miss anything good. Actually, I'm kind of glad you missed it since it's kind of embarrassing."

"Oh, okay." I said with a nod.

Just then, the door the medical area slammed open.

"KIBA!!!" yelled Kiba's mom as she came stampeding in with many of the household dogs that surely would have trampled me if not for the fact that I jumped out of the way.

Kiba's mom ambushed Kiba and checked him for injuries while talking on and on about how much she was worried about him and how he would never ever EVER be taking the Chuunin Exam again. Kiba really only rolled his eyes and nodded, not intending at all to fulfill his mother's wishes that would most likely last only for the hour.

Almost immediately following, I looked up to see my father standing in the doorway.

I could tell he was very disappointed, so I decided to go over to him while all the commotion was on the other side of the room. The medical ninjas were commanding Kiba's mother to calm the animals down.

"Hinata." Said my father.

"Yes Father?" I said, lowering my head.

He didn't answer for a while. "Nice…effort." He said finally.

I would have almost preferred for him to scold me instead of receiving something like that.

"Thank you." I said. It was quite obvious what he was actually thinking. About succession and my ability as a ninja not coming along as strongly as Hanabi's. However, Hanabi was still three years away from graduation.

"I'm taking Hanabi home." He said. "There is no reason for us to stay and watch the rest of the tournament. Come home when you like."

And with that, he was gone.

I looked over at Kiba and his family as he tried to calm them down.

I must admit I did feel a little jealous, but just a little.

When Kiba's mom and the dogs finally left, the medical ninjas told us it was all right to leave.

"I don't see how the Sand girl won that round if I'M able to just walk out and she has to stay for medical attention." Kiba said in a bit of an offended tone.

"I think you were knocked out before her." I said.

"I guess." Said Kiba, but he sounded bitter. "Hey, Hinata. What did your dad say to you?"

"He said I did a good job." I replied quietly.

"You did, Hinata!" Kiba said. Even though I know it wasn't true, it sounded so kind and sincere coming from Kiba as oppose to my father. The words from my father sounded callous and harsh.

We entered the stadium just as our friends, the medical ninjas, carried Naruto off the field. I feel sorry for Naruto. He didn't win.

"Ha!" laughed Kiba. "I'm glad Naruto didn't win. His mouth is always flapping. Don't you think, Hinata?"

I didn't know how to answer, so I just didn't.

"Hinata, do you want me to walk you home?" Kiba asked.

I wanted to go home, but I didn't want to go home. "I'd rather stay out." I confessed.

"Okay!" said Kiba. "Do you want to go eat?"

"Actually…I'm not very hungry." I said.

Kiba looked like he was truly trying and I felt so sorry. I just didn't know what I wanted to do. I was all around unhappy with the outcome of the tournament. The day hadn't gone at all well. Kiba and I both lost our matches. Shino didn't return from his mission in time and Naruto didn't move on to fight Sasuke or Ino in the finals. And, to top it all off, my father was disappointed in me.

"Hinata, I'm going to take you out to eat." Kiba said suddenly.

I wasn't going to argue with him. I allowed him to lead me to a restaurant where we sat down at a table across from each other.

A waiter came over.

"And what does the little couple want?" he asked.

"Oh, we're not a couple—" Kiba said.

"--Not together—" I said frantically.

Kiba and I looked at each other. I couldn't help but crack a smile. The mere thought of being "together" with Kiba made me laugh on the inside. Kiba was so not my type, and I was so not Kiba's type. But everybody seemed to think we were going out these days.

I just hope Naruto didn't get the wrong impression.

"Okay…just friends then." The waiter said.

"Yeah." Said Kiba. "We're on the same team."

"Oh, teammates." Said the waiter, but I could tell he didn't really care. But why should he? "What'll you have?"

After the waiter took our orders, he left.

"Hinata, isn't that funny?" Kiba laughed out loud, but it sounded strangely forced. "That waiter thought we were a couple!"

"I know!" I said. "Imagine that!"

"That would be weird!" Kiba continued. "I mean…yeah, that would definitely be weird!"

"Too weird!" I agreed.

We both cleared our throats.

I reached for my water, but Kiba reached for his at the same time. As a result, he spilled his all over the table… and all over me as well.

"Oh…I'm sorry!" Kiba said, springing up and grabbing a napkin.

"It's all right!" I said, standing up and brushing my clothes off a bit. "It's only water."

He came over to me with the napkin, pause for a moment and then awkwardly handed it to me. "Here…" he said. "You can uh… dry off a little bit with that."

"Oh, okay." I said. It was quite obvious that I would have to dry off a bit with the napkin.

In only a few moment's time, the waiter returned to find the spilled water. He was a little pouty but didn't directly blame either of us for the crime.

We were moved to a new table.

"Kiba…" I said slowly.

"Yeah?" Kiba said.

"Do you think that either of us will become chuunins?" I asked.

He smiled. "Not today, Hinata." He said. "And not tomorrow. Not the day after or the week after or even a month from now. But I have a good feeling about next year."

"Why?" I asked.

"Because I'm going to train harder." Kiba answered. "And I know you will too."

I nodded. Kiba was right. He always seemed to know what to say.


	24. Uchiha Sasuke: My Success

Uchiha Sasuke; 2 Years Later

Age 14

-My Success-

Today was the day of the Chuunin Exam Tournament.

This year, I fought my way through the preliminaries and am successfully admitted into the true portion of the Chuunin exam that mattered. I was clearly the most skilled ninja in the tournament and therefore it would be easy sailing on my way to becoming a chuunin.

I made my way nice and early to the exam. Being late didn't work last time, so I decided to show my punctuality to the new Hokage. Though she wasn't really all that new anymore, since she had been our Hokage for two years.

"Hey Sasuke!!" I heard a voice behind me.

It was Ino's voice, I knew right away. She was also in the tournament, but only because her opponent in the preliminaries was a pathetic contender and hardly put up a fight. I turned around to face her, but I was surprised to see she looked almost like a boy that it at first fooled me. Her hair was cut shorter than mine was and she was no longer wearing purple or a skirt.

"Hi Ino." I said, not really knowing how to react. I guess she had cut it in the month I hadn't seen her.

She came up next to me and we started walking. I was a little confused at first at how that had transpired… she hadn't even ASKED to walk with me and suddenly I was walking with her.

"Sasuke, maybe we'll fight each other in the tournament!" Ino said, sounding excited.

"Maybe." I said, though I knew it would never happen.

"All I have to do is win my fight against Hinata and I KNOW you'll win your first fight!" Ino continued. "It'll be so fun if we get to fight each other!"

"Yeah." I said. "Right."

And she didn't say anything more. Well, at least she hadn't annoyed me to an unbearable extent.

We reached the stadium where most people were already waiting. Among myself and Ino, there was Naruto, Kiba, Hinata, Lee, a female ninja from the Sand Village named Yatara as well as a ninja from the Mist Village named Demakase. I was to fight Demakase in the first round. I didn't really know what to expect from him, but I knew I'd beat him.

My fight was also scheduled to be in the first bracket. I was glad I wouldn't have to wait around for any period of time and get my first fight over with.

Demakase was ugly and had buckteeth. He was also probably in his late twenties and the fact that he was here made me think that it was all a charity because he was such a bad ninja that the higher powers decided to just let him in the exam to make him feel better about himself.

But I wasn't going to underestimate my opponent.

So when the examiner told us to start the fight, I immediately took on the offensive. And, as Demakase stood there like a moron, I managed to land many punches and kicks on him.

I figured there had to be a catch and he was trying to lead me into believing that I had one and let down my guard. But no. After only a few minutes, Demakase was a mess on the ground, which confirmed my earlier suspicious that he did not belong in the tournament.

"Winner; Uchiha Sasuke." Said the examiner. Like it was even a question.

I went back to the overhang where all the other chuunins-to-be were waiting.

"Oh wow, Uchiha Sasuke, your name has gotten all the way to my village and I have to say you certainly live up to it and I'm really surprised that you're not already a chuunin and I have to say that you are really really cool and strong too!!" screamed that girl from the Sand Village. But I ignored her. Because I hate her.

"Ino, you're up next, right?" I said.

"Yeah, I am!" Ino answered. I have no idea why I even said that, but Ino ran by me towards the fighting arena. Hinata also nervously shuffled by. I knew I didn't even have to watch this match to know that it would be nothing impressive. I'd be fighting one of those two girls in the next round and I most certainly was not worried at all.

"Hey Sasuke," said Naruto, stomping over. "You think you're SO cool just because you beat that Mist guy up! Well you're NOT!"

"Right, Naruto." I said, rolling my eyes.

"Sasuke!!" Lee yelled, running over as well. "Promise you'll save the finals for your fight with ME!!"

"I'M fighting Sasuke in the finals!!" said Naruto.

"I thought we all mutually decided that _I _was going to fight Sasuke in the finals." Kiba said randomly.

Once the Sand girl put her two cents in, I decided to just ignore the rest of the conversation. It didn't concern me because they could not predetermine anything. If they wanted to fight over who got to be beat up by me in front of three villages, then let them.

Suddenly, I could hear cheering from the crowd. Someone had won the fight. I stood up because I must admit I was vaguely interested about who would be fighting me in the next round to see Ino coming back towards where we were standing. I wasn't surprised. Even though Ino is nothing special, Hinata is even less special.

"Nice job!" said the Sand girl.

"Thanks!" said Ino.

"I hope I can fight you later on!" the Sand girl continued.

"Hey!" said Kiba. "You're fighting ME next and I'm going to beat you!"

Kiba and the Sand girl had to go out to the arena, but I didn't care enough to watch that round either.

"Sasuke, I am really excited to fight against you." Ino said, sitting down. "I think it'll be enthralling!"

I rolled my eyes. Girls were so annoying, even if they DID look like boys.

Naruto and Lee were over at the entrance doing narrations of what was going on in the fight between Kiba and the annoying Sand girl. They were talking about how bad they were going to beat each other too.

I did expect Kiba to win…but he didn't. I hadn't ever really paid attention the sand girl fighting so I didn't know what to expect from her if she ended up winning against Lee or Naruto. Probably Lee. But I doubt she'd win. I mean, unless she was REALLY good. Which I doubt.

But the Sand girl didn't come back to the overhang. Even though she had won in her fight, she was unable to continue fighting and had to be taken to the medical area.

"ALL RIGHT!!" cheered Naruto and Lee at the same time. "NOW I AUTOMATICALLY GET TO FIGHT SASUKE!!!"

They both glared at each other as they went out to fight.

It was now only Ino and I in the hangover area. And then I came to realize that I hadn't done anything about the fact that she was still sitting next to me so I cleared my throat and stood up.

"Sasuke, are you thinking about a strategy to defeat me?" Ino asked.

I looked at her. "No." I answered truthfully. I didn't NEED to spend time thinking of a strategy to defeat her.

She smiled. "Well you should." She said. "Because, otherwise, you won't be able to beat me."

Something was really different about her. "Something's different about you." I said, though I didn't entirely mean to.

"It's the hair." She said immediately. "I know you like long hair better, but it was always getting in the way whenever I trained so I had to cut it."

I'd still like to know who started that rumor about me preferring long hair.

"Whatever." I said, looking at the fight for the first time. I had looked over just in time to see Lee dramatically tossing his leg weights to the side. I did a quick glance at the stands of people, thinking maybe I'd see something I knew. I saw Shikamaru sitting near the Hokage in all his jounin glory. I lost faith in the promotion system when I found that Shikamaru was a jounin and I was still a genin.

But not for long.

Lee's certainly been training hard since last time I saw him fight. Certainly harder than Naruto who takes a lot of time off and wastes all his energy trying to be my rival and obsessing over Sakura.

I wasn't all that taken aback when Lee rose triumphant from the battle.

"We will now begin Round Two." Called the examiner. "Yamanaka Ino and Uchiha Sasuke."

She and I went into the arena. The stands were completely silent.

"Sasuke, would you hate me if I beat you?" Ino asked as she got in her fighter's stance.

"That's not an issue, so I'm not going to bother thinking about it." I said, getting into mine.

"Ready?" said the examiner. "Go."

I didn't want to end this one as quickly as I had ended the other one because I wanted a chance to show the examiners and Hokage what I could do. Even though I knew there was always a chance for that in the finals when I fought against Lee, it's better to be safe than sorry because if I didn't become a chuunin this time then I'd…oh I don't know. I'd so SOMETHING.

I used my Sharingan, something I had neglected to use in the first fight, but it's not like I needed it. The entire crowd gasped at the sight of it, knowing that I was the only one among them who could do it.

I threw a punch, but intentionally missed. Ino raised her arm, hit my fist to the side and threw me off balance. Then, she spun around to kick me while I was stumbling, but I recovered quickly and easily and was able to dodge her attack. But she had conducted it with great speed, which told me that this was no time to be taking it easy.

And if that didn't clue me in then Ino scolding me for taking it easy did. If she was sharp enough to notice that I was going easy on her after only one punch then maybe she deserved a little more effort.

I decided to use the Katon Housenka in order to distract her and while she dodged, I was going to land my attack on her.

I started the hand seals and just when I was about to finish them, Ino was suddenly behind me and attacking again. I ducked just in time and went to hit her, but she once again disappeared.

She was making me look like a fool.

"Shinranshin no Jutsu!!" I heard her yell.

I spun around to see her standing only a few yards away from me with her hands contorted into a seal. I didn't immediately know what the attack she was going to use was, but I knew it's not something I wanted to be caught by so I leapt to the side. As I rolled to the ground, I whipped out three shuriken and threw them at her.

She caught each of them easily but while she did that, I attacked.

In midair, she threw them back at me, something I had not expected. So I caught them as well and returned them.

Our battle went on.

As I tried harder, she did too and I found myself suddenly out of breath. How could she have improved this much in such a short amount of time? I had underestimated her initially and taken her too lightly and now I was paying the price for it.

Finally, when she was off guard, I used her own attack against her.

"Shinranshin no Jutsu!" I yelled as it connected with her. She immediately froze and looked like she was unable to move anymore. I didn't know what I was supposed to do with her jutsu at that point.

We must have stood there motionless for a long time because the examiner began to clear his throat.

"Winner; Uchiha Sasuke." He said.

"It's over?" I said, looking at him, which made me drop the jutsu. Ino fell to the ground and then looked up.

"Oh…" she said sadly. "I was hoping to win…"

I was still a little confused. How could the round be over? Ino could still fight and I had to admit, I still wanted to fight her. She was a good opponent.

"The final round will begin in ten minutes." The examiner said.

"All right!!" I could hear Lee cheering from the overhang area.

I leaned over, looking past Lee at Ino who was rejecting the help of the medical ninjas. She looked very disappointed with herself.

"No, I don't need to go to the medical place!" she insisted, standing up on her own. She looked at me. "Nice job, Sasuke! I don't know why I ever thought I could beat you."

"You're a good fighter, Ino." I admitted. "You have an even blend of ninjutsu and taijutsu."

"I guess I have to work on genjutsu then…" Ino said as she pushed some loose bangs out of her eyes.

Something came flying out of my mouth that I couldn't control. "Your hair looks better short." I said.

"Really?" she said, her face turning red. "I thought you liked long hair."

I didn't know what to say, so I only shook my head.

She nodded and then looked at the medical ninjas. "Actually, I think I do have to go." she said.

As Ino left with the medical ninjas, I suddenly felt very, very stupid. I looked up in the stands at all the villagers watching me intently, as if waiting for me to do something exciting. So I did the opposite of what they were hoping for and just strolled over to where Lee was waiting.

"I can hardly wait for another eight and a half minutes!" Lee said, throwing punches left and right.

He was just going to wear himself out.

Lee and I were the predicted favorites of the tournament. I knew more people expected me to win than Lee, and I also knew I would not be walking away from this tournament with only second place. I had worked very hard to get where I am right now, and not just in the tournament.

"Hey Sasuke," Lee said randomly.

"What?" I asked.

"What did you think of that Yatara from the Sand Village?" he said.

"I don't think of her." I said.

Lee laughed. "She was pretty." He said. "But not like Sakura!"

I have no idea what Lee saw in Sakura. Sakura wore so much make-up and designer clothes these days that she hardly even looked like herself anymore and it certainly hindered her fighting abilities.

"Whatever you say, Lee." I said.

"So I can have her?!" Lee gasped.

"Sure, I don't care." I said. "_I _don't want her."

"You like Ino better anyway, don't you?"

I didn't have anything to respond to that.

"What makes you think something like that?" I answered finally.

"It's just a guess." Lee said, but he was obviously lying. He had said that for SOME reason.

"Did you hear that from someone?" I demanded from him. "Did Ino tell you that? Because it's not true."

"She didn't say anything." Lee said. "It just kinda LOOKED like you kind of liked her."

He shrugged and started punching the wall.

I was becoming slightly angry on the inside. If Lee was under the impression that I liked Ino… which I DON'T… then I could only imagine what Ino was thinking.

Ino was annoying like all girls. She was just a better fighter than most, but she was still annoying.

Lee would have to receive an extra beating for irritating me and making me have to think about such trivial things.

"The Final Round will now commence!" the examiner called. The crowd erupted with cheers. It didn't feel like ten minutes had gone by, but maybe the examiner was sick of waiting. "Rock Lee and Uchiha Sasuke!"

I could already see my future as a chuunin as I walked out there with Lee. My promotion was pretty much ensured if I was able to defeat Lee. But of course I'd be able to defeat Lee. One of the reasons why I'm so much stronger than the rest of the genins is because I have the ability to focus on my training and not concern myself with impressing the opposite sex.

Of course, I always seemed to end up doing that ANYWAY, but that's beside the point.

"Ready?" said the examiner as the crowd fell silent and my eyes met with Lee's.

The examiner waited and then uttered, "Go."


	25. Tenten: An Antagonist

Tenten; 2 Years Later

Age 15

-An Antagonist-

I planned on meeting up with Lee at the tournament to wish him luck. After all, he was entering the chuunin exam now. And, even though it had been HIM who had knocked me out of the preliminaries, I didn't harbor any hard feelings towards him. In fact, I wanted him to do well and become a chuunin!

First I went to Neji's house. I knocked on the door but no one answered. That was certainly odd.

As I walked away from the house, I gave myself a dope slap when I remembered that he was away on a mission and wouldn't be back until tonight.

So what now? I had planned on walking to the tournament with Neji so we could cheer Lee on together. Well… I'D cheer Lee on and Neji would sit there pretending to be bored but… you know.

Finally, I remembered that I could go over to Sakura's and walk with her! Even though she's gotten really… DIFFERENT recently, I still like to think that she's a nice person that's just having a hard time showing itself.

I knocked on her door and her mother answered it.

"Hi!" I greeted. "Is Sakura still here? I know she's going to the tournament but I was hoping to catch her before she left!"

"Oh yes, she's here." Said her mother as she turned around. "Sakura!" she called up the stairs.

"What is it mom?" I heard Sakura from her room.

"Your friend is here!" Sakura's mother replied.

Sakura came down the stairs with more make-up I'd ever seen on a single person in my entire life. I wasn't even sure if it was Sakura at first.

"Oh, hi Tenten!" she said. "What's up?" It was lucky that Sakura got distracted by her mother because I was still in shock. "Um… you can leave." She said to her mom.

"Oh right." Said Sakura's mom as she hurried away.

Yeah, it was definitely Sakura. "So anyway?" Sakura said to me.

"I was just on my way to the tournament." I said finally. "Do you want to walk together?"

"Absolutely!" Sakura said excitedly. "Let's go visit Sasuke before the tournament begins!"

"Oh, I was going to go and visit Lee anyway!" I said.

"Oh right!" Sakura exclaimed. "I want to visit Lee too!"

We started walking. I was thinking about how happy Lee must have been when he read that program that stated, _"The finals are predicted to pitch fifteen-year-old Rock Lee and fourteen-year-old Uchiha Sasuke against each other."_

I wondered if Sakura knew about the program.

"Did you know that Sasuke and Lee are the two that are predicted to be in the finals of the tournament?" I asked.

"Yes!" she said. "Did you read the program?"

"Yeah!" I said. I guess she DID read the program… "I bet that gave Lee a big head."

"Probably." Sakura laughed.

I was about to bring up the fact that Lee also had the most anticipated match with Naruto, when I spotted him talking to Gai. Well, he wasn't really TALKING to Gai. He was more so being 'youthfully encouraged', as they would call it, by Gai.

Sakura looked at me helplessly.

I knew how to go about breaking them up because I had to do it almost every day of my life.

"Um—" was all I had to say and they both whirled around to see who had trespassed.

"Hi Tenten!" said Lee with a gleeful grin. "Hi Sakura!"

"Hi!" I said. "We just came by to wish you luck!"

"We'll be watching from the stands the whole time!" Sakura said. "Do you know where Sasuke is?" No Sakura, don't say something like that! You'll break poor Lee's heart!

"No." Lee replied. I could tell his heart was broken, but I don't think Sakura even noticed.

"Oh that's okay!" said Sakura with a shrug. She definitely didn't notice. "Come on, Tenten! Let's get good seats!"

"Wait, wait!" Lee called. "Tenten, is Neji coming to watch?"

I was about to answer instinctively with, "OF COURSE, Lee you idiot! He wouldn't miss it!!" But then I remembered he WAS going to miss it and that he was away on a mission. Lee should have known that though. "Oh no, Neji's away on a mission. I thought you knew!"

"That's right!" said Lee, slapping his forehead. He was disappointed. I knew Lee wanted Neji to see him fight so he could prove something to him. No matter how many times I told Lee to become a chuunin for HIMSELF instead of for anyone else, he stayed focused on impressing people and proving to people that he could be a great ninja. It worked for him though.

"Come on!" Sakura urged.

We went into the stadium and luckily found two seats that were front row.

"Neji's away on an B-rank mission with another chuunin." I said since I figured Sakura might want to know about his mission since I had brought it up with Lee.

She didn't answer.

"I think the other chuunin might be Shino…" I went on.

Still, I got no response.

"I wonder what sort of mission it is…" I sighed. He never told me about his missions.

"Tenten, stop talking obsessively about Neji." Sakura said.

I was shocked. I had said only a few comments! THREE! And they weren't even all that entirely about Neji! And besides, Sakura's the one who never stops about Sasuke.

"I'm not talking obsessively about Neji!" I said, feeling my face getting hot. The last thing I needed was Sakura thinking I liked Neji.

Which I DON'T.

"SAKURA!" I heard suddenly. Even though the person was calling for Sakura, I looked up anyway to see Naruto running towards us. "You got a great seat!! You'll really be able to see me fight from here!"

Sakura took a deep breath, ready to break another boy's heart within only a few minutes. "Naruto, I came to watch SASUKE fight." I told him flatly. "And Lee, Ino and Hinata because they're my friends. Pretty much everyone except you."

That was the harshest thing I had ever heard her say, and Sakura was a pretty harsh person.

"Aren't _I _your friend?" Naruto asked, looking sad.

"Naruto…you'll never understand." Said Sakura.

I tried to pretend as though I was preoccupied with something else. I didn't know what to say about what had just transpired, only that I didn't like it.

"Naruto is SO annoying." Sakura said once Naruto had left.

"I guess." I said.

"Oh look!" Sakura exclaimed. "Sasuke's fight is starting!"

Sasuke and a kid from another village came out for the first fight.

"Ew…that kid is really ugly…" said Sakura.

I had to agree. "Yeah. But he might still be a good ninja."

He didn't turn out to be a good ninja. In only a few minutes, he was defeated by Sasuke.

"I stand corrected." I said.

"Sasuke is just so AWESOME!" Sakura said happily. "YAY SASUKE!! LOOK UP HERE!!"

I felt like telling her to stop talking so obsessively about Sasuke, but I am way above that petty sort of comment.

"Who's fighting next?" I asked instead.

"I think Ino and Hinata…" Sakura said. "Who are you cheering for?"

"Um…" I started. Ino, Sakura, Hinata and I used to be really close, but recently Ino had gotten way hardcore so we had sort of drifted apart. "I don't see Ino around very much anymore… so I'll have to say Hinata!"

"Yeah, me too." Sakura said. "Ino thinks she's too good for us."

That's not how I had looked at it. "I don't know about THAT."

But Sakura wasn't paying attention to me, more to Ino's new haircut. "Ew, oh no!" she shouted. I was afraid that maybe Ino could hear her. "WHY would she do that? She looks so ugly now! She looks like a boy!"

"I don't think she cares what she looks like anymore." I said. Sure, I thought Ino looked better with long hair, but I could understand her reasoning for cutting it.

"Ew." Said Sakura. "No. Ew."

"It really doesn't matter." I said.

"Well, I should be HAPPY. After all, Sasuke likes long hair. If Ino has short hair then he won't like her. Which means he'll notice ME! Ino obviously wasn't thinking at all when she cut it all off. Oh, ew. She looks so stupid. Why did she do that? Ew."

Sakura had gotten a lot shallower since the last time I had seen her. She seemed to get shallower and shallower every day.

After watching the beginning of the fight, I actually decided to switch to Ino. I cheered for her, but to myself because I didn't want to have to deal with Sakura.

"Ino's not really all that good." Sakura said after Ino had successfully won. "Hinata must have been having an off-day. When she fights Sasuke, he'll put her in her place."

"I don't know." I said. "She's been training awfully hard lately."

Sakura laughed out loud. "Ino and I are EVEN in our skill. She's not that good. It's just that Hinata was an easy opponent."

I wondered who she was trying to kid; me or herself. "Whatever you say, Sakura." Said Tenten.

Sakura frowned at me to show her disapproval of my comment, but I was watching the fight between the girl from the sand village and Kiba.

"I'm going to go and say hi to Sasuke." Sakura told me, standing up and walking briskly away.

I wasn't going to stop her. I needed a break from the model that was Sakura.

The girl from the sand and Kiba didn't prove to be a very interesting match. I was glad, though, that I didn't have Sakura, the endless fountain of comments, breathing down my neck during the entire fight.

Just as the fight ended, Sakura returned.

"It was a double knock-out." I told her, figuring she'd want to know.

"So?" she said.

I shrugged and turned back to the fight. Naruto and Lee were coming out.

"Why is everyone so quiet?" Sakura whispered.

"This is the most anticipated fight in the tournament." I said, getting a little frustrated with Sakura's inability to understand ANY concepts anymore. "The crowd is just excited."

"Why is this fight so anticipated?" Sakura asked.

I could have SWORN she said that she read the program. "Because Lee and Naruto are both really good."

"Ew, Naruto's not good."

I wasn't even going to respond to that.

When the crowd started cheering, I cheered as well. Sakura cheered too, but it was quieter.

"COME ON LEE!" I yelled, knowing he'd cheer for me if I was taking the exam and he was in the stands. "You can do it!"

I saw Lee take a new stance. I knew he was going to take off his weights!

"Lee's going to take off his weights." I said, getting a little excited even though I had seen it plenty of times before. "Just watch. He's getting that look."

"Oh?" Sakura said, not looking very interested.

Lee removed his weights and tossed them behind him. I clapped and cheered with the rest of the crowd. I knew he had the fight in the bag now.

"See?" I said to Sakura. "I told you he would."

"I didn't say you were wrong." She said. Wow, I didn't even know her anymore.

Lee beat Naruto pretty easily, so I decided to lighten the tense mood. I don't know WHY it was tense, I knew only that it was.

"Well, Lee beat Naruto!" I said to Sakura. "We knew he would!"

"Yeah." Sakura said.

"And, since there was that double knockout, Lee automatically goes to the finals to fight Sasuke or Ino." I continued.

"Well obviously Sasuke." Sakura said. "I mean. Come on. Ino's just Ino. Sasuke is… Sasuke."

"Yeah, that makes total sense." I said with a slight laugh. For some reason, Sakura got offended and ignored me.

"GO SASUKE!!" Sakura cheered. I almost had to dive out and grab her in order to keep her from tumbling over the wall and into the fighting area because she was leaning over so far.

They started to fight.

"Sasuke's letting up on her." Sakura said.

He did look vaguely like he was doing that, but I was pretty convinced that Ino was doing it for herself.

"Guys always let up on girls." Sakura said.

I was a little annoyed that she was doing this, but I tried to ignore her.

"He's just doing it for the crowd so everyone can see what a good ninja he is." Sakura continued.

She wasn't going to stop, so I had to ask her to even though I knew she'd get offended. "Sakura, could you stop?" I asked as politely as I could.

"Stop what?" Sakura asked.

"Trying to justify why Ino is doing a good job." I said. "Ino has been working really hard and if you put in about half as much effort as she did, maybe you'd notice."

I hadn't entirely meant for all of that to come out of my mouth, but it had so I couldn't do anything to change it. Once again, Sakura decided to give me the silent treatment. I was actually happy since I didn't want to have to listen to her anymore.

But the silent treatment lasted about forty-five seconds and she was already going on with more questions. "When is this fight going to be over? Why doesn't Sasuke just beat her?"

"Maybe he can't beat her." I said.

"I wasn't talking to _you_." Sakura said with an utter tone of disgust in her voice. I hadn't done anything to deserve the treatment I was receiving.

I was relieved that the fight had ended. Though, I have to admit that I had been cheering for Ino JUST so Sakura could be disappointed. It was too much to hope for, though, because Sasuke won.

I clapped with the rest of the crowd. There was going to be another ten minutes until the finals started between Lee and Sasuke, and I guess Sasuke and Ino were taking up some of the time by talking a bit to each other. I didn't care, but Sakura certainly did.

"What is she saying?!" Sakura demanded as if I knew.

I didn't reply because she supposedly wasn't talking to me and the last time I had said something to her I had gotten a curt reply.

"Well?" said Sakura. There was just no pleasing her!

"I thought you weren't talking to me." I said, trying to sound patient even though she deserved none of it.

"I'm NOT!" Sakura shouted, standing up. "Tenten, you are being really mean for no reason. I'm going to go and sit someplace else to watch Lee and Sasuke fight!"

"Whatever." I said. If she thought _I _was being the mean one then she seriously had to reevaluate… everything.

She stomped away in a huff and I finally got a little time to relax. Sakura had made me feel so tense. I decided that unless she formally apologized to me, I was not going to accept her back in a friendship. Then again, the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I didn't want to be her friend anymore. She talked about people behind their backs… and IN FRONT of them too.

I didn't want to think about Sakura anymore. I just wanted to watch the fight between Sasuke and Lee.

"GO LEE!!" I cheered. Now I didn't have to worry about anyone rolling their eyes while I cheered. I decided I would be happier once I disassociated myself from Sakura.


	26. Nara Shikamaru: My Sad Existance

Nara Shikamaru; 2 Years Later

Age 14

-My Sad Existence-

I woke up the morning of the Chuunin Selection Exam, thinking I was late. After all, I'm always incredibly tired whenever I'm late for something. But then I realized I was incredibly tired not because it was late, but because it was early.

There was a ninja outside my window. I climbed out of bed, accustomed to the early morning visits.

"What is it?" I said in a half yawn as I opened the window.

"The Hokage wants to see you." Said the ninja.

"This early?" I said.

"Shikamaru, it's almost ten." Said the ninja.

And…

"Like I said." I said.

"She says it's important." The ninja said as he hopped away. I rolled my eyes. As much as I wanted to climb back into bed and go to sleep, I knew I couldn't blow off the Hokage.

The Hokage always seemed to want to speak to me. Whether she wanted me to go on a mission for her or devise some sort of strategy for other missions, I never seemed to have any time to myself anymore. It made me regret that day I entered the jounin exam.

And became a jounin.

I put on my vest and went downstairs.

"Dad, I'm going to the Hokage's place." I said, walking past him.

"Uuuh." Was all he said.

"Hold it right there, young man!" came my mother's voice. I turned around and looked at her. "What about breakfast?"

"Mom…I have to go." I said.

"Well…oh all right…" she said with a sigh.

I went to the Hokage's office. When I got there, there were two ninjas waiting instead.

"Where's the Hokage?" I asked.

"She went to the tournament and wished that you'd meet her there." One of them replied.

I wish she had told her messenger that. The tournament stadium was in the opposite direction so I had to actually pass by my house again on my way there.

I approached the Hokage.

"Oh, good morning, Shikamaru, I hope I didn't wake you." She said.

I had promised Chouji that I'd watch the tournament with him so whatever the Hokage had to say had better not be about me watching the tournament with her in order to help her decide who deserved to be a chuunin.

"I was hoping you'd be able to watch the tournament with me in order to help me decide who was worthy of becoming a chuunin." She said.

I had to keep myself from slapping my forehead.

"Is it all right if I watch part of the tournament with my friend?" I said.

She thought. "Very well." She said, but sounded reluctant. "You can watch the first four fights with him since those are rarely the important ones but then come straight back."

"Yes ma'am." I said with a bow of my head.

I went where I had said I'd meet Chouji the day before. He was sitting there staring blankly into space so I called out his name to get his attention.

"Shikamaru!" he said in response as he moved so I could sit next to him. I sat down with a sigh.

"Sorry I'm late." I said. "The Hokage wanted to talk to me about things. I have to leave after the first set of fights."

"Why?" he asked.

"The Hokage." I answered simply. He didn't need to know the specifics because then he'd want to… I don't know. Talk about it.

"Oh that's okay, Shikamaru." Chouji said. "I don't mind."

I knew he did mind. He had no one else to watch the tournament once I left. But he'd be fine because I'd meet up with him after the tournament.

"Who's up first?" I asked so there wouldn't be awkward silence anymore.

"Sasuke and that kid from the Mist village." Chouji replied. "I don't think it'll be much competition for Sasuke, though."

"That's for sure." I agreed. "It kinda makes me feel sorry for him. Then again, you have to feel sorry for anyone who's up against Sasuke." I knew Otoko Demakase. Well, not personally, but I knew he wasn't that good of a ninja. After reviewing the profiles of all the contestants with the Hokage the night before, I felt like I knew a lot of them personally, though.

"Shikamaru, Ino's going to have to fight Sasuke if she wins her fight." Chouji said.

I sighed. "If Ino gets beaten by someone, I'm sure she'd rather it be by Sasuke than someone else." I said finally.

I know how hardcore Ino had gotten recently. I was very impressed with her skill but I got the feeling that I didn't even know the half of it. In fact, I had even pulled a few strings to get the Hokage to agree to send Ino on a low-key B-rank mission here and there. You know, just to make Ino happy.

I almost completely missed the entire fight between Demakase and Sasuke. The Hokage and I had already come to the conclusion the night before that Sasuke was going to become a chuunin and he was only in the tournament for show.

"Now it's Ino's fight!" Chouji said happily.

"She's only up against Hinata." I said. "She should be fine."

"I don't know, Shikamaru!" I said. "Hinata's the one who beat ME to get into the tournament after all!"

I didn't know if he meant that to be an impressive thing or not. While Chouji's a great guy and everything…I wouldn't say his ninja abilities were really… top notch. "Yeah, but didn't Ino beat that guy from the Sound Village?" I said, not entirely speaking my thoughts. "She'll be fine."

Chouji squinted to get a good look at Ino and Hinata as they walked out on the fieldn.

"Oh…Ino cut her hair again." Chouji concluded finally.

I squinted as well. Sure enough, Ino's hair was shorter than a lot of guys that I knew, including myself. She also wasn't wearing anything that would show off her figure like she used to. Instead, she was clad in respectable and sensible clothing for fighting.

"She looks like a boy." I decided finally.

"Ino's really focused on becoming a ninja." Chouji explained. "I mean, if she's willing to cut all her hair off for it, you know she's serious."

"I guess so." I agreed. I guess it had been too long since I had checked up on Ino and Chouji's training. But there really was no time. I'd like to make time though.

I was surprised when Ino attacked Hinata as intensely as she did.

"Ino's gotten better than I thought." I observed.

"I bet she could beat YOU, Shikamaru!" Chouji laughed.

I knew he was only joking, but I couldn't even PRETEND to laugh around with a comment like that.

"You know," Chouji said after clearing his throat and realizing that that comment didn't fly with me. "She might actually give Sasuke a run for his money."

I evaluated Ino's fighting. I had to pay attention to the fights if I was going to have a hand in deciding who was to become a chuunin.

"I think she might be able to beat Sasuke." Chouji continued.

Now that was a thought. "This might be a little mean, but I'd love to see that just so Sasuke could be devastated." I said.

Chouji laughed.

He didn't say anything more and allowed me to concentrate on the fight. I probably wouldn't have any influence over the Hokage in Ino's fate just in case there was any favoritism because Ino had been on my team, but if it were up to me, I'd make her a chuunin.

Because in only a few minutes, Ino had won.

"Who do you think will be in the finals in the other bracket?" Chouji said, looking at the program.

"Why don't we just take one fight at a time?" I tried.

"It'll probably be Lee…" Chouji said as if I hadn't said anything. "Or Naruto… maybe…"

"Keep in mind we don't know what to expect from that girl from the Sand." I reminded him.

"That's right!" Chouji said with a snap of his fingers. "For all we know, she could win the whole thing!"

"I wouldn't go that far." I said. Jiyuu Yatara was not the pride of her village. She had made it in by chance, in my opinion. But she would prove as a good advisory to Kiba.

"Yatara from the Sand Village…" Chouji said. "She's fighting against Kiba."

At about that time, Kiba and Yatara came out to begin their fight.

I could tell that Kiba was having and off day because he was arguing with his dog. The only reason I knew this was because I had seen him fight before and I knew that he didn't usually argue this much. Still, even if he had been on his game, he would not be promoted.

Yatara was no better. She allowed herself to get annoyed by Kiba, a mistake that a chuunin could not make. She had to fix problems like that with more training. She would not be promoted either.

"Neither of these two will become chuunins." I said, though I sort of regretted it a minute later. I didn't need to be sharing that sort of information with Chouji even if he was my friend.

"What do you mean?" Chouji asked. "How do you know?"

"They need more training." I said simply.

In the end, it was a double knockout. However, Yatara was declared the winner, but that was nothing to be proud of when it came to a double knockout. All you can say about that is that you were good enough to win, but not good enough to beat your opponent.

Next up were Naruto and Lee. This match was going to prove to be an exciting one. "I think people have been anticipating this next fight the most." I told Chouji. "They all remember Naruto beating Neji two tournaments ago. And Lee did incredible work last time."

"How come Lee didn't become a chuunin last time anyway?" Chouji questioned.

Even though I didn't have any part in it last year, the Hokage and I had discussed her reasoning for it last night.

"It's that ninjutsu genjutsu thing." I told him even there was NO reason why he should be enlightened as to the reasoning. "It's hard to overcome something like that."

"Well, Lee is a good fighter." Chouji said. He stopped talking as Lee and Naruto came onto the field and struck their battle poses.

"Lee will win." I said.

Chouji looked at me, but didn't say anything.

I had to leave after this fight, but I wanted to at least watch the fight between Sasuke and Ino with Chouji. Ino was our teammate and I wanted to see her through this as a team, even if she didn't even know we were supporting her.

I must admit that I'm impressed every time Lee removes his weights. It was obviously a gimmick in order to draw in the Hokage's interest and impress her, but it worked. Anyone who trains with that much weight on his legs and goes about his daily life carrying around that much weight all the time has to by worthy of wearing the vest that those with less ability than he wear every day.

"Naruto won't become a chuunin." Shikamaru said.

I really had to work out that whole inner monologue thing.

"Why not?" Chouji asked.

"Not enough." I replied.

He did nothing different and nothing impressive. Everything he did we had all seen before. Lee was original. Lee won.

"Ino and Sasuke's fight is next." Chouji said after the field was clear.

Who was going to win this fight? I wanted to assume it would be Sasuke, but Ino…she was getting very good. "Hm…" I said with a sigh.

Ino and Sasuke came out to fight.

"GO INO!!!" Chouji cheered.

Our seats were so far away from the fight that not even someone with an advanced bloodline that would aid them strongly in hearing would have been able to know that Chouji had just belted out a mindless cheer. "Chouji, she can't hear you from all the way up here." I told him just so he wouldn't get disappointed when she didn't spin around and wave to him.

"Maybe she can!" Chouji said.

Okay, there was no convincing Chouji otherwise…

The fight was closer than I had ever imagined.

Ino was putting up a spectacular fight, but it was quite obvious that Sasuke was only toying with her. He was letting up a bit on her at first, but then he started to get more serious.

In return, Ino ALSO got more serious.

They threw shuriken at each other as if they were playing catch.

They both certainly had very good taijutsu and ninjutsu, but we had yet to see any genjutsu yet.

The people in front of us stood up to start cheering.

I was going to let out an exasperated sigh in vain hope that it would occur to them that they were standing directly in my field of view, but Chouji turned to me at that exact moment and said, "Do you think Sasuke is going easy on her?"

I hoped he hadn't just realized that. "He looks like he is." I answered as the people sat back down. I watched Ino fend of Sasuke's attacks. I wished I could see their facial expressions from up here. "But that could just be because Ino's gotten good."

"Do you think she can win?" Chouji asked.

I watched the fight more. Ino was running out of stamina, something she couldn't help as being only a girl. Sasuke just naturally had more stamina than she did.

"No." I answered.

As soon as Sasuke returned the Shinranshin no Jutsu at her, I knew it was all over. Chouji was completely captivated by the battle so I figured that I should just slip out before he even noticed to save myself a few minute's worth of goodbyes. After all, I was already very late to meeting up with the Hokage.

The examiner was ending the match just as I reached the Hokage.

"Shikamaru!" she said, sounding angry. "You're late! I told you to be back before this fight began!"

"Um…I got lost." I said.

"Well, a lot of good this is going to do us!" said the Hokage. "I do hope you were watching the match carefully!"

"I was." I replied.

"Well?" she said. "I'm thinking Uchiha Sasuke…"

"We already decided that last night." I reminded her.

"Yes, of course." She said. "I was just getting that one out of the way."

"It's not my place to evaluate Ino—er, excuse me—Yamanaka Ino." I said, realizing I had accidentally lost formality.

"And why not?" the Hokage questioned.

"Because she was on my team when I was a genin." I said. "And that could sway my decision."

"Really, Shikamaru?" said the Hokage. "Will you HONESTLY let that sway your decision?"

"No." I answered. "But there's the chance that you might think it would."

"I know you better than THAT." Said the Hokage. "So what do you think of her—as a future chuunin?"

I evaluated my analysis of her fights.

"She is very skilled." I said. "She has also had a tremendous improvement over a short period of time so that means she's only going to get better. Her taijutsu and ninjutsu are better than some of the chuunins we have in our ranks… though I won't mention names…"

"So…" the Hokage led.

"I think she could be a chuunin." I said. "And a good chuunin at that."

The Hokage mulled over that one for a minute or so.

"Well…" she started. "Oh wait! The finals are starting! I've been excited about this match all day! I am DEFINITELY making both of these two kids chuunins. As for Yamanaka Ino? We'll talk about her later."

"Yes ma'am." I said with a sigh. What a sad existence I led.


	27. One Year Later

Intro; 3 Years Later

Everyone is pretty sure that he or she is the center of the universe. They all see the same event in a different way. How is everyone growing up? What will their reactions to the new events in the village be?

Ino and Sasuke have made quite the ninja team. But are they more than just a team? Huge mix-ups occur because of ambiguity on Ino's part, and many people end up getting hurt in a single night. Certainly not physically, but emotionally. Meanwhile, Tenten is concerned with her own feelings towards a certain ninja, but he is absurdly busy. Shikamaru gets a very surprising assignment and has no time for the fun everyone else is having… except for maybe Chouji who continues to question his chances of becoming a great ninja. Then, of course, there's always Shino who will sit back and watch it all.

The four teams of ninjas that we have come to know and love can't stay fourteen forever. Eventually, everyone grows up.

Will Sakura give up on Sasuke?

Will Shino help everyone along?

Will Chouji pick up the pace in his training?

Will Ino be able to keep her friendship with Sakura?

Will Lee get over Sakura?

Will Shikamaru screw everything up for the village?

Will Hinata ever recover?

Will Neji ever stabilize mentally?

Will Sasuke regret his decision?

Will Kiba get some hints on what to do?

Will Naruto finally grow up?

Will Tenten call it quits?

All these questions, and many more, will be answered. One year at a time.


	28. Haruno Sakura: Pink Heels

Haruno Sakura; 3 Years Later

Age 15

-Pink Heels-

Not only was I by far the most beautiful ninja in the entire village, but I was most definitely the most beautiful girl my age.

Strike that, most beautiful girl PERIOD.

Therefore, there was no way Sasuke could ever deny me.

I was also past that age in which I sneaked into my mother's room to steal her make-up and put it on only when she wouldn't see it.

The make-up made me look even MORE beautiful, if that was even possible, and my mother knew it!

That's why she bought me my own make-up kit.

My hair was really long now. It was probably as long as Ino's before she cut it back when we were twelve. Now her hair is so short she looks like a boy.

Well, not so much anymore, but she still looks ugly and butch. I'm pretty sure she's given up on Sasuke too. I mean, if she hasn't then I feel bad for her. Not only is Sasuke mine, but she's going about it all the wrong way. Everyone knows that Sasuke likes long hair.

I hardly showed up for training anymore.

If I went to training then I might break a nail or ruin my hair or something else that would be equally horrendous.

Naruto occasionally came by my house asking where I had been. I always hide in my room and pretend not to be home.

"Sakura!" I heard my mother call up the stairs.

I tried to ignore her. I was in the middle of doing my make-up and she should know that I hate being interrupted while I was doing my make-up.

"Sakura!" she persistently yelled.

Just ignore her. Just ignore her.

"SAKURA!" she shouted.

I slammed my hand down on the table. "What IS it mother?" I said.

"Telephone!" she said, sounding exasperated but _I _was the one who should be exasperated.

"MOM!" I yelled. "Why didn't you tell me it was something important like the phone for me?!"

I know I've said it a thousand times, but my mom is probably the worst mom ever.

I went to the phone in the other room. She won't even let me have a phone in my room! That's how bad she is!

"Hello?" I said, careful not to touch the phone to my face because I had just put my make-up on and would hate to smudge anything after all my hard labors.

"Sakura?" came Ino's voice.

"Oh…hi Ino." I said, a little disappointed. Had I been expecting Sasuke? Maybe.

"Hey, you doing anything tonight?" she asked.

"Maybe." I said. "It depends."

"Depends on what?" Ino asked.

That was a stupid question. "On what you're going to say." I answered.

"Oh." Said Ino. "Well, I'm inviting a bunch of people down to the club… oh, I forget the name, but you know which one, right?"

"Right…" I said, twirling the phone cord around my finger. Oh, a chip in my nail polish. I'd have to fix that.

"So, do you want to come?" she asked.

I sighed. Why would I want to come with Ino and 'a bunch of people' down to a club? Ino's definition of 'a bunch of people' probably consisted of Shikamaru and Chouji. Like I wanted to spend time with THEM.

"Sasuke'll be there."

"What?" I said, nearly jumping out of my seat.

"So Lee will swing by your house at 7:00 to pick you up." Ino said.

"Right, whatever!" I said. "See you there!"

I hung up the phone without saying another word. Oh! Ino had set me up on a date with Sasuke! I was so happy.

But what was it she had just said about Lee picking me up? I didn't want to make him think that I wanted to go out with him or anything. I'd just have to leave before he arrived.

7:00?

Time to get ready.

I knew exactly which dress I was going to wear. I was going to look completely irresistible to all men, but especially Sasuke.

I had the perfect shoes to match. They were pink and were really high heels. I was going to look like a goddess with my dress and shoes on.

I shoveled through my closet for my shoes, but they were nowhere to be found.

"Mom!!" I yelled. "Mom!!"

My mother came to the bottom of the stairs.

"What is it?" she asked.

"Where are my pink, super high heels?"

"Sakura, what makes you think that I know where your things are?"

"I don't know!" I said. "Maybe because you're my MOTHER?!"

"Well, sorry, I don't know." My mother said, walking away.

That was her solution for everything. Just walking away like that.

I turned around to look for them some more.

I pulled almost everything out of the closet. I NEEDED those shoes.

But no matter how hard I looked, I couldn't find them anywhere.

"MOM!!!" I yelled.

"WHAT?!" my mother's faint voice came from downstairs.

"I CAN'T FIND MY PINK HIGH HEELS!!!!" I yelled.

She didn't answer.

"MOM!!" I yelled louder.

"SAKURA, I'M VERY BUSY!!!" she screamed at me.

She's so unreasonable!

I was just going to have to settle for my pink boots. Sure, they were heavenly but they definitely wouldn't attract as much attention as my super high pink heels.

I slipped the dress on and hopped down the stairs, grabbing my matching pink purse on the way.

"Sakura, where are you going?" my mother said.

"Just out." I said. "Do you ALWAYS have to know exactly where I'm going?"

"Yes." Said my mother.

I gave a sigh. "Mom, I'm just going to the club with a few friends."

"What friends?" she asked.

"It's INO!" I said. "You remember Ino?"

"Oh yes." She said with a nod. "I remember Ino. She was such a sweet girl! How come she never comes over anymore?"

"I don't know, ask HER!" I said, going out the door and shutting it behind me. I think my mother likes my friends more than she likes me… which would definitely be typical of her.

I suddenly remembered that Lee was going to be stopping by. I opened the door back up.

"Mom, if Lee comes by, tell him I already left." I called.

"Okay, Sakura." She said back.

Then I left for good.

The walk to the club wasn't a very long one. But on the way, I realized just how much I didn't like my pink boots and wished that I had my pink heels instead. I would attract so much more attention if only I had my pink heels!

I entered the club and immediately began my scouting mission for Sasuke.

They weren't too hard to find. There was Hinata, Naruto, Ino and Sasuke sitting at a single table. I was going to make my way over and smoothly get his attention.

I started over and then caught Lee coming in out of the corner of my eye, so I jumped into the arms of some kid who had been dancing.

I spun him around and used him like a human shield as Lee ran by towards the table. Now I knew things wouldn't be so smooth.

"Hey." Said the kid. "What's up?"

I looked at him.

"Don't read too much into it." I said, letting go and pushing him away. "I don't dance with _losers_."

I flipped my hair the way they do in the movies and then began my walk over to Sasuke. But then I watched as Ino grabbed Sasuke by the arms and forced him to his feet, pulling him over to the dance floor. My eyes nearly popped out as she set him up to dance with her.

He obviously didn't want to.

She was laughing.

I knew she was laughing at the thought of me coming in.

This had all been a set up to make me lose faith in my love for Sasuke. But I was smarter than that and I would rise above Ino and her tricks.

I marched right over to where they were dancing. But Ino was leading, so it was obviously just an act.

"Who do you think you are?!" I demanded of her. She immediately stopped dancing and looked at me as if SHE were the victim. "How DARE you do such a thing! You ask Sasuke out behind my back and trick him into coming out with you and then you try to cover it up by making it a group get together thing! You KNEW I loved Sasuke!!"

Ino didn't say anything. She knew I was right and therefore couldn't even begin to defend herself.

I looked at Sasuke who was just standing there. HE was the real victim.

"Sasuke, look deep into my eyes." I said.

"I'm looking."

"And tell me you don't love me." I instructed.

This sort of reverse psychology always works on men. You see, men have a certain tendency to not do as they're told so if you ask them to say they don't love you then they are likely to reply with--

"I don't love you."

Like I was saying, guys really just do whatever they're told to keep things less complicated.

"NOW," I commanded. "Look deep into my eyes again!"

"And?" Sasuke said.

Oh…Sasuke's beautiful eyes…

"And tell me that you love Ino."

He stuttered.

"Well?!" I demanded. He wasn't saying anything.

"I…" he started. "I…"

An answer TODAY would be nice!

"Sakura, don't put Sasuke in this situation!" Ino yelled suddenly. "You're a terrible person and you seriously need to reevaluate everything you stand for!"

I was in shock. Ino was trying to look like some kind of hero by saying something like that. She wanted to impress Sasuke but some kind of macho shorthaired girl isn't what Sasuke wanted! Even though she DID look kind of pretty in that purple dress… she still wasn't nearly as beautiful as me.

"How dare you, Ino." I said. "I thought you were my FRIEND."

"Well, I thought so too. But not anymore."

I didn't know what to say to that. I looked at Sasuke but he wasn't going to say anything either. This couldn't be happening. I was on the same three-man team as Sasuke. Ino wasn't. I was ahead of her. How did this happen?

I stormed off.

I was angry, but at the same time extremely sad.

Then I looked back at Sasuke and Ino. Neither of them were coming after me to apologize. They had just gone back to talking to each other as if I had never even come.

That's when I began to cry.

If only I had my pink heels then he would have noticed me instead of just having eyes for Ino.

I ran out of the club and slouched down on the curb.

I felt so dejected. Sasuke was MINE! How could Ino do such a thing to me? She thought she was so great just because she was a chuunin! Well, I'd show her!

"I hope Naruto and Hinata's date goes okay." I heard from across the street.

I looked up to see Sasuke and Ino walking together. I don't think they noticed me because they didn't look at me at all.

Sasuke was going to drop her off at her house. And then, when he was alone, that's when I'd make my move. Obviously, Sasuke had been influenced by Ino's presence when I had asked him to express his true feelings for me.

I got up and followed after them, keeping my distance.

Then I figured I'd take a shortcut to Ino's house to cut them off.

I came in and hid behind her front steps. I waited there for a minute and checked my make-up just in case any of it had smudged when I had started crying for that brief moment.

I could hear them approaching so I shut my mirror and sat there in silence.

"Sasuke, I'm sorry." Ino said.

Just go in the house already.

"WHY do you keep saying that?" Sasuke said.

Don't ask, just let her go in the house.

"Because I AM sorry!" Ino stomped her foot and then I heard the sound of something hitting another thing.

I couldn't help but peek over the steps.

I had to throw my hand over my mouth to keep myself from gasping out loud.

Ino had thrown herself upon him! I had thought she was above all that, but apparently I was wrong! No wonder he was so awkward around her!

"I didn't mean for that to happen." She said, but it was obviously a lie. "And these heels were really expensive too… they were my mom's. I borrowed them from her because I didn't have anything that would match this dress…it's actually Tenten's since I don't have any dresses and—"

I almost did gasp out loud at what happened next.

It LOOKED like Sasuke kissed her, but I knew that would never happen.

She must have kissed him.

How DARE she kiss him!

And how DARE he look like he liked it!

End! End!! You tramp! How dare you kiss my Sasuke!

"Good night." He said when they had finally finished slobbering all over each other.

"Good night." Ino said, as she went into her house.

Sasuke lingered in the doorway for a moment or so and then slowly turned, walking away.

How could he? How could he?

I didn't get out of my hiding spot. I let him leave.


	29. Aburame Shino: Bystander

Aburame Shino; 3 Years Later

Age 15

-Bystander-

It's not that I was worried about Kiba or anything. Just…concerned.

I didn't think it was such a great idea to send him off on his own for a mission. Kiba's never really been the levelheaded type and to make him his own boss and crew on a mission just was a situation asking for a disaster. He was two days late in returning.

Maybe I wasn't the only concerned one.

"Do you do this EVERY time Kiba goes on a mission?"

Hinata looked up at me. She had been staring off into space in the vague direction that Kiba was expected to return from. I didn't know how long she had been there or how long she planned on staying there, but she was probably taking years off her life worrying. It was so typical of Hinata to be like that. Kiba told me that she did that all the time when I went on missions too.

"Not normally." She answered as I sat down next to her.

"What makes this time so special?" I asked.

"I'm just worried about him." She replied.

She didn't need to tell me that. It was quite apparent.

"Well, we know he's not lost." I said, trying to comfort her a bit.

"Getting lost is impossible for Kiba." She said, trying to make herself smile.

I didn't even know how I had ended up here. Was it truly my concern for Kiba's well being that had brought me to this place? Or had I just so happened to come across Hinata?

"So what made you come here at this time?" I asked, figuring I could get an answer from her.

"I got a feeling Kiba would come back today." She answered.

Maybe that was it. Maybe something in my subconscious had told me that Kiba would return today.

Minutes dragged by as Hinata and I sat in silence, staring off down the road.

This was so unlike me.

Hinata finally stood up. "I should be getting home." She said, though I could tell she didn't want to.

Her father expected her home, that much I knew. I nodded at her.

"Are you leaving too?" she asked.

I didn't want to hear myself answer. No, I wasn't leaving. But I didn't want to say it out loud. For some reason, it just didn't seem right. Slowly she wandered off when she realized that I wouldn't answer.

"No." I said once she had left.

What was I doing?

It's not like he was just going to come running up the road.

Oh wait, here he comes.

He was running as fast as he could. He didn't look like he could see anything except the Hokage's office. Was he really that eager to report that his mission was finished?

"Kiba, slow down." I said as I stood up.

He stopped and looked at me. He was so dirty that it appeared as though he had simply rolled around in the mud the entire duration of his mission. It was then that I notice Akamaru curled up in his arms.

"Shino, Akamaru's hurt really bad!" he said. "Where's the Hokage?"

"She's on vacation."

Kiba tripped over his words. "How can the HOKAGE just take a VACATION?!" he demanded as if it were my fault. "She has to heal Akamaru!!"

"Shikamaru is filling in." I told him.

"Shikamaru isn't going to help." He said, looking annoyed.

I had figured he'd want to know why the village wasn't falling apart. Apparently, Kiba has a one-track mind. "You could try asking Shizune, the Hokage's assistant." I tried.

"Where can I find her?" Kiba asked eagerly.

I knew it would practically counterproductive to just TELL him where to find Shizune. I had to actually take him there or else he'd mess it up, just like he tended to mess up everything else. I motioned for him to follow me and I hastily took him upstairs because I knew he'd have a heart attack if I didn't move fast. I took him past the Hokage's office and into the area where one could usually find Shizune, taking care of paperwork.

"May I help you?" came Shizune's voice from behind all her work.

I figured I'd let Kiba take it from here.

"Hey, can you heal Akamaru?" he asked, walking right up to her.

She looked at Kiba questioningly. She waited for such a long period of time before actually doing something that even I was ready to ask her if she planned on acting on the matter. I was surprised when Kiba just looked at her silently, waiting.

Finally, she did something about it. It took her less time to heal the dog than it did for her to consider doing it. She probably thought it was ludicrous to spend time healing a dog and that she shouldn't waste her time on it. Though, it would have taken her less time to just heal him as opposed to consider all the possible ways she could have potentially gotten out of it.

"There." She said. "Just rest him up for a day or so. No vigorous training or missions for at least a week, though!"

"Yes ma'am!" said Kiba. "Thanks!"

Kiba turned around and crashed into me. I could have sworn I had stopped at the doorway…

We left Shizune's office. Kiba looked much lighter, like there was a weight off his back. He was caressing his dog in his arms with more affection than I see most lovers deal with each other.

That boy would be so sad when that dog died.

For some reason, that thought made me think of Hinata.

"You should find Hinata." I said to him.

"Why?" Kiba asked.

That was a stupid question. "She's been worried about you." I told him.

"Let's take Akamaru home." Kiba said. "Then we'll find Hinata!"

"Okay." I said, not knowing how it suddenly became 'we'.

I knew that the moment we opened up the door, Kiba's mom would be all over him and give him the speech about how he was too young, too inexperienced, and how she NEVER should have let him do it, and how she should have listened to his sister.

"Kiba, I was SO worried about you!!" his mother shrieked, running over to him and clinging onto him that suggested she'd never let go. "I never should have let you go on that mission on your own!! I knew you were too young!! I should have listened to your sister!!"

"MOM!" Kiba said, pushing her away. "I'm dirty! You don't want to hug me!"

"Of course!" she said. "But why are you so late?!"

Kiba went through the whole story. Akamaru had fallen down a trap and gotten hurt. Kiba couldn't get down the trap, so he had to dig down and out the walls so he could reach the dog. I was shocked to hear that he had been doing that for two days straight and then still had the energy to run home as fast as he did, but then I realized that it wasn't really all that strange for Kiba.

"And NOW we're going to go and find Hinata!" Kiba said, finishing up his story. "Cause Shino said she's been really worried!"

"She has been!" Kiba's mother said. "I think she's been over here three different times to ask me if you were home yet! Which, of course, only made me worry even MORE! Oh, Kiba, if you're going to go and see your girlfriend you should at least wash your face off."

I knew Kiba would go off about how Hinata was not his girlfriend.

"MOM!" he yelled angrily. "She's not my girlfriend!!"

I would never get away with yelling at my father.

"Shino, she's not my girlfriend." Kiba said.

I zoned back in. "Okay." I said.

Then Kiba went off to the bathroom to clean his face. He always did what his mom told him to do. People told him he was a mamma's boy, but I never gave him any crap about it. I didn't care.

He came out of the bathroom. He had done an extremely insufficient job at washing his face. He had gotten the major parts in the middle, though those areas were still dirty, but there was still a ring around the outer rim of his face that hadn't even been touched.

"Come on, Shino!" he said, obviously not caring as he grabbed me out the door.

"Come home soon!!" his mother called but he slammed the door on her, also something I would never get away with.

We began the walk to Hinata's house.

"Hey Shino, I think I'm growing a beard." Kiba said.

And I had actually just begun to think about how Kiba had been unusually NOT random today.

"Okay."

"Should I grow a beard?"

"I don't know."

Kiba put his hands in his pockets and kicked the ground. He was probably feeling a little weird without Akamaru trotting by his side. I have to admit, it felt weird for ME to be with Kiba and not have Akamaru shadowing us.

"Hey Shino, was Hinata REALLY worried about me or just KINDA worried about me?"

I thought about it. At first, I figured she had just been 'kinda' worried. But then I considered all of the aspects of how she had acted. Then I realized that she had been REALLY worried.

"REALLY worried." I told him.

"Oh." He said.

I caught sight of Hinata walking across her front lawn and across the street. I think Kiba was a little caught up in his thoughts for once because he didn't look up at first.

"There she is." I said, pointing at her.

"Where's she going?" he asked.

How was I supposed to know?

"Let's follow her!" Kiba said.

I have to admit I was slightly curious as to where Hinata was going. In addition to leaving her house at an un-Hinataish time, she was also a little dressed up. What did this mean? Was Hinata going to a party?

She crossed the street again, going towards a club.

With music.

Kiba got behind me as if I was some kind of tree that he could hide behind and not be noticed. "Whoa, Hinata's going clubbing?" he said.

I watched her walk right up to Naruto and begin to talk to him.

"I think she's meeting Naruto." I said.

"WHAT?" Kiba said, nearly knocking me over in attempt to get a better view.

Hinata and Naruto then went into the club. They weren't hand in hand or anything, but it was enough to make Kiba worry. After all, no matter how much he tried to deny it, it was quite obvious that he was attracted to her. I mean, I am probably the last person in the entire world to ever think or consider something like that, but it was still apparent to me.

"Are they going on a date?" Kiba whispered.

"I don't know."

"It LOOKS like they're going on a date."

"Why do you even care? It's not like she's your girlfriend."

"I know that, Shino!" he yelled angrily.

I'm no Cupid, but when people reacted in such a manner, that tended to mean that they were jealous.

I looked at him, wondering what he was going to do next. He most definitely wanted to go into the club, but obviously felt bad about spying on her. I was going to let him make the decision.

"Okay, FINE!" he said. "Let's follow her! But only because YOU want to so badly!"

If that made him feel better in his skin then I wasn't going to argue with him. It was rather pointless to argue with Kiba, especially on such matters. So I allowed him to lead the way into the club. I scanned the area for Hinata and Naruto, but did not see them initially.

Suddenly, Kiba dove on top of me, knocking me to the ground while screaming, "DUCK!"

No doubt he had seen Hinata and Naruto and was now afraid that they had seen him.

"Kiba, if you yell like that, you'll get noticed." I warned him.

"Shh, be quiet Shino!" he said, as if I was being the loud one. "Let's go sit over there!"

He pushed me over to a table. I sat down and observed as Sasuke and Ino joined Hinata and Naruto, and then Lee came over. It seemed like they were having a little pow-wow shindig.

"Hey, Sasuke and Lee are there too!" he said. "What's going on?! I've only been gone a few days!!"

Was I understanding this correctly? Did Kiba think that Hinata was involved in some kind of…orgy?

"Ino's there." I said to help calm his nerves.

"Oh, okay." Kiba said, relaxing a bit.

But his relaxation was short lived.

He kept trying to see past the people who were bouncing by us, moving to the beat of the music.

I must have had a better seat than him because I could see everything perfectly and didn't have to move at all. Ino, Sasuke, Naruto and Lee all got up from the table to do various activities.

Kiba looked at me and then sprung out of his seat. "Hey!" he yelled. "Hinata's sitting at the table all by herself!"

"You should go over and talk to her." I said.

"No way! She'll think I'm stalking her or something."

"You kind of are."

"Be quiet Shino!" he said, always avoiding the truth. "I'm going to get a little closer."

I observed him move across the club. He spoke to a woman a bit and then followed Hinata as she went to the bathrooms. At that point, I lost track of both of them. I hung around for a little while, but neither of them came back.

Was I happy for them?

Was I angry that they forgot about me?

Was I sad now that I was alone at some club?

Naw.

I was none of the above.

I was Shino.


	30. Akimichi Chouji: For the Thrill

Akimichi Chouji; 3 Years Later

Age 15

-For the Thrill-

"Consolidation" was a very odd thing.

It's also very complicated, and I'm not sure I understand it.

"Chouji, I know this may seem very far into the future," Asuma said, trying to explain it once again. "But when a ninja reaches the age of seventeen, he can no longer remain on a fragmented three man team."

"That's right!" I said. "I've been the only one on this three man team for almost a year."

"True." Asuma said. "All the genins who are seventeen will be grouped together in a process called 'Consolidation'. They will then be handed over to a single teacher who will train them very harshly and extensively for an entire year. Is this all making sense so far?"

"Yes." I said.

"Upon becoming eighteen, the teacher will then return his students to the village and they will undergo the Chuunin Selection Exam. I'm sure you are familiar with the Chuunin Selection Exam."

"I am!" I said.

"If the genin fail, they are sent back to train with the teacher. They will train for another year and return for the exam when they are nineteen. This cycle continues on and on until either all the genins become chuunins or the ones that are still failing are dubbed hopeless cases."

"What happens to the hopeless cases?" I asked.

"Well, depending on the circumstances…" Asuma said, scratching his chin thoughtfully. "They will either be asked to quit being ninjas or they will be sent to other villages to train."

"In that case, I have to train harder than ever!" I declared.

"Yes!" Asuma said. "And I will help you!"

"Starting right now!!" I said.

"Agreed!" said Asuma.

"Your order's here!" came the voice of the waitress as she put heaps of food down on the table.

"After we eat!" I said.

"That I can most certainly agree with as well." Asuma said, nodding.

We both began to eat without exchanging much more.

Suddenly, Asuma began to speak.

I couldn't understand a word he said, though, because his mouth was so full.

I tried to inform him of this, but my mouth was also incredible full so we just ended up in mumbling to each other.

So we both swallowed.

"Go ahead." I said.

"Did you ever talk to Shikamaru about training with us?" he asked.

"Oh yes!" I said as I almost put more food in my mouth but then remembered that I was in the middle of a conversation so, even though it looked painfully delicious, I would have to wait. "Shikamaru told me that he would come and train with us today!"

"That's excellent news." Asuma said.

"I could go over to his house after we eat and then meet you at the training spot." I suggested. "That Shikamaru is probably still sleeping in!"

"I wouldn't be so sure, Chouji." Asuma said. "Shikamaru is a jounin. He has been for two years, which means he's pretty high up on the totem pole. I expect he'll be promoted to special jounin as soon as he becomes of age and completes the required amount of missions."

"I know, Asuma." I said. "But I know Shikamaru likes to sleep in late."

"There's not much time for that when you become a jounin." Asuma said.

"Shikamaru sure is dedicated." I said with a sigh.

"Even though he sometimes looks like he doesn't want to do something, he does it anyway because he knows that's what he has to do." Asuma nodded.

I laughed. "Either that or he's just whipped!" I said.

"'Whipped', Chouji?" Asuma said, looking slightly confused.

"That's Ino's word for someone who lets himself get bossed around by girls." I said, standing up. "Shikamaru!"

Asuma laughed. "That's Shikamaru all right."

"Well, I'm going to go and remind him that he's going to train with us today." I said, pushing my chair in.

"Don't expect anything, Chouji." Asuma advised as I went to the door. "If he's busy, don't interrupt him from his work. Just remember that someday YOU'LL be an important jounin and—"

"Asuma… I have to go." I said, not really wanting to hear another one of his supposedly motivational speeches which actually ended up making me feel kinda down on myself. He talked about responsibility and aspirations that I would have to fulfill if I got promoted.

What ever happened to becoming a ninja for the thrill and experience of it all?

What happened to the FUN?

That's when I saw Shikamaru walking slowly in the direction of the Hokage's building.

"Good afternoon, Shikamaru!" I greeted him, jogging over.

He looked a little tired, as if his mind was on something else.

"Hi Chouji." He said in that same tired fashion that his expression suggested.

"Fine day, don't you think?" I said, walking next to him. I figured he needed a little boost.

"I've seen better." He said, looking up at the clouds.

"Oh Shikamaru!" I laughed in attempt to lighten the mood. "That's not the way to look at things!"

If I said it in a joking fashion while also meaning what I said then I'm sure I would get my point across.

"If you say so, Chouji." He said.

Shikamaru certainly did seem tired.

Perhaps he was going somewhere important and I was only disrupting him from doing that. That's what Asuma had said.

He was probably too busy for us.

"Hey, where are you going anyway?" I decided to ask.

"The Hokage wanted to see me." Shikamaru answered.

I knew the Hokage had priority over me and my desire to train a little with Shikamaru before the day ended.

Still, the fact disappointed me.

And I wasn't going to say anything about training so I didn't bother Shikamaru any more, but I couldn't help it. I had been very excited about training with him.

"Oh, what about training?" I said, trying not to sound in any way forceful.

He stopped walking. "Training?"

Oh no. He had forgotten about training.

Well, now was no time to simply utter, "Nothing," and walk away.

I had to tell him even though I knew it would bother him that he had forgotten.

The Chuunin exam was only a little ways away and, even though I was pretty confident that Asuma was going to nominate me for the exam, brushing up on my skills would be ideal.

I had told Shikamaru this a little while back when I had first had the revelation and he had said that that was a very good idea. And if Shikamaru thought it was a good idea with his endless fountain of good ideas, then it must have been a REALLY good idea!

But it was just an idea unless it really happened.

"Remember?" I said. "You said you'd help me train today!"

Shikamaru slapped his forehead.

I had done it.

I had put another straw on the camel's back.

Not that Shikamaru is a camel or anything… it's a metaphor… but… never mind…

Shikamaru was upset and tired about SOMETHING and I had only succeeded in making it worse.

"Oh…um…" he said, clearing his throat a lot and sounding nervous. "I… can't today…"

It wasn't my place to make this any more difficult than it already had been for him.

Asuma was right.

Shikamaru had many important things to do as a jounin and I shouldn't expect too much out of him.

"That's okay Shikamaru!" I said, forcing a smile.

"Can we get a rain check?" Shikamaru requested.

"Of course!" I said, but somehow I got the feeling that it wasn't going to happen.

Not in the near future, anyway.

He stood there, contemplating something that I would never even be able to begin to understand.

"You should hurry though!" I said finally so that he would get going. I didn't want to be at fault for getting him in trouble with the Hokage. "I don't want to keep you from your important meeting!"

"Thanks for understanding, Chouji." He said, sounding grateful as he waved to me and left.

He probably couldn't be bothered with something as silly as training with me. I didn't want to have to go through Consolidation, but that's another two years from now.

I had all that time to train.

With or without Shikamaru.

I gave a heavy sigh.

What if I had not been on my way over to Shikamaru's at that exact moment? I may not have bumped into him. Then what would have happened? That would have been quite a misunderstanding.

Oh well, I can't dwell on it.

I had to concern myself with training hard so I would become a chuunin and avoid Consolidation. I didn't want to be dubbed a hopeless case so if that meant sacrificing a lot of my free time in order to become a great ninja, I would have to do it.

I mean, people had sacrificed all kinds of things to become good ninjas!

Shikamaru had given up his lazy life of looking at the clouds.

Ino…well…Ino gave up something different. She sorta gave up her femininity. Though, I don't know if she did it entirely to become a good ninja. I think she just wanted Sasuke to notice her and had to become a good ninja in order to do so.

But it had worked for her.

Not only was she a great ninja, but she got to spend a lot of time with Sasuke.

This, of course, inevitably meant she spent less time with me. It's not like I pined for Ino's company, but she certainly could make a conscious effort to stop by more often.

"Hey Asuma!" I called as I came running up to the training area where Asuma was waiting for me.

I wonder what Asuma had given up to become a good ninja?

"Hello Chouji." Said Asuma. "Any luck?"

"Naw…" I said. "Shikamaru was busy…"

"Yeah, I just got word." Asuma said. "Apparently, the Hokage took off on a vacation without telling anyone."

What about our village? Oh, I just know Murphy's Law! Now that the Hokage was away, that was when some evil and sinister neighboring village would decide to attack us. What then?

"Oh no!" I said. "Really?"

Asuma laughed at the apparent fret on my face.

"Stop laughing!" I said, sounding rather frustrated.

"Don't take it personally, Chouji!" said Asuma. "I just thought you might like to know who's filling in."

I had never thought of that.

I laughed at myself for being so silly.

Of COURSE the Hokage would get someone to fill in for her! She wouldn't just frolic off and leave the village unattended!

Asuma wasn't really saying anything, so I had to ask even though it was quite obvious to both of us that I did want to know who was filling in for her. Asuma works in strange ways sometimes though.

"Who?" I asked.

Asuma smiled at me.

He was going to make me guess…

Who…

Who indeed…

I looked at the grin across Asuma's face.

Couldn't be…

"Not…Shikamaru?" I said.

"Yes, Shikamaru is filling in for the Hokage!"

I gaped. "No way!" I yelled.

"Yes, it is true." Asuma said.

This had to be some kind of joke. Why would Shikamaru be filling in for the Hokage? He was very skilled and very smart but I never thought that the Hokage would put someone so… YOUNG in her place when she left!

"For how long?" I asked eagerly.

"Until the Hokage returns from her unexpected vacation." Asuma said with a shrug.

"Wow!" I said. "We should go visit Shikamaru and congratulate him!"

To think I had been all caught up in the fact that Shikamaru wasn't able to train with me today! That's because he had to go and be the Hokage!

Oh Shikamaru, he could have just TOLD me!

Then again, knowing Shikamaru, he probably was embarrassed about it for whatever reason he had.

"Chouji, what about Consolidation?" Asuma said.

"Consolidation won't happen for another two years!" I said. "I have plenty of time to become a great ninja!"

"Chouji, that's not the right attitude."

He was right. With an attitude like that, I knew it would suddenly be the end of my final chance to become a chuunin before Consolidation and I would have no choice but to be Consolidated.

"You're right, Asuma!" I said, learning to fear the idea of Consolidation. Just the word sounded a little creepy. "I have already made my vow to spend more time with my training and less time with little things that don't matter in the long run!! So let's start our training!"

"Right on!" said Asuma.


	31. Yamanaka Ino: The Hardest Mission

Yamanaka Ino; 3 Years Later

Age 15

-The Hardest Mission-

Sasuke and I had been going on missions together a lot lately. So it came to be expected when we were assigned for missions together.

"We completed our mission." I said as I opened the door. Something that WASN'T expected was seeing Shikamaru in the Hokage's seat. "Shikamaru?! You're not the Hokage!"

"Yeah well…" Shikamaru said. "The Hokage's on vacation. I'm filling in."

"Aren't there OTHER people who are more qualified that could fill in?" Sasuke questioned. It was a valid question.

Shikamaru didn't look too thrilled about the question though. "I guess. You'll receive your payment tomorrow morning. You are dismissed."

He obviously just wanted us to leave. It's not like I wanted to hang around for very much longer though.

Sasuke and I walked outside. He was quiet, but he wasn't trying to leave. I took a deep breath and decided to go for it. I wasn't going to be pushy and I wasn't going to be annoying. I was going to be polite and courteous and consider his feelings.

"So Sasuke…" I said slowly.

"Yeah?" he said, looking up and at me.

I quickly averted my eyes. "What are you doing for the rest of the day?"

"A shower." He replied. "I don't know. Probably just hang out."

I was really nervous. How could I be so nervous? When I was younger, I used to ask Sasuke out all the time. Why was it suddenly so difficult?

"Do you want to hang out maybe… together?" I tried, looking at him again.

It was his turn to look away. He was silent.

"Well…" he started. "I have…stuff…to do."

I let out the breath I had been holding. That was all right. He didn't want to go out with me and I had promised myself I wouldn't be annoying about it.

"Well, I'll see you around." I said to him, walking a little quicker. I felt embarrassed now and didn't want to walk next to him.

"Around when?"

I stopped dead. Had I heard that right? That WAS Sasuke, wasn't it?

"Around…seven?" I said slowly.

"Around seven." He replied.

I spun around with a big smile. "Okay!" I said happily.

He waved to me, and I waved back. I could feel like my heart was going to jump right out of my throat or that I was going to sprout wings and fly all the way home. As soon as I was out of Sasuke's sight, I ran home as fast as I could to call someone. WHAT was I going to wear?

Half way home, I took a detour and went over to Tenten's house. I knocked on the door frantically. Tenten opened it.

I let out a loud gasp. "Tenten!" I said.

"What is it?" she said, looking concerned.

"I'm going out with Sasuke tonight!" I exclaimed.

The two of us shrieked like typical teenage girls as we jumped up and down. She was legitimately happy for me. I went inside her house and explained the whole story beginning to end. I finished up with telling her that I had nothing to wear. None of my dresses from when I was twelve would ever fit my new fifteen-year-old body.

"I know what you can wear." Tenten said, going over to her closet and pushing some things around.

"I'm so nervous!" I said. "And I bet Sasuke is too! He's going to be really awkward about going on a date with me!"

"Maybe you should invite some other people to come along?" Tenten suggested.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Like…instead of it being just a date between the two of you, it'll be a big group in order to wean Sasuke into the idea of going out with you." Tenten explained. "Eventually, you two will get away from the group and go out ALONE."

She pulled a purple dress out of her closet. It had short sleeves and would reach my knees.

"That's a great idea!" I said, taking the dress. "And a great dress. Though, I'm going to hate myself forever."

"Why?" Tenten asked.

"If I invite anyone else along, I mean." I replied.

"You should call Hinata." Tenten said. "She's liked Naruto for ages. Maybe you can set them up too."

"Aren't you coming?" I asked.

"No." Tenten answered. "Neji's going to talk at the academy to ninja hopefuls and he asked me to come along."

I raised an eyebrow. That didn't seem right. "He asked YOU?" I said.

Tenten shrugged unconvincingly. "Okay, okay…" she said. "I volunteered to come along to reach out to the female portions of the class…"

"Uh huh…" I said. I knew she liked him. It was so obvious.

"Hey, it's almost six!" Tenten said, trying to change the subject. "You better get home and get ready!"

"Oh right!" I said. "Thanks for the dress, Tenten! I'll give it back to you after my date with Sasuke!"

I loved the sound of that. "My date with Sasuke." How easily it had just rolled off my tongue like that! I got home and showered and blow-dried my hair. There wasn't much I could do with it since it was so short, but I found a clip that matched the dress perfectly and put it in to make me look a little more feminine.

I couldn't find any shoes to wear. My feet had grown out of all of my shoes so I crept into my mother's room. My parents weren't home, so I'd just slip the shoes back unnoticed.

I practiced walking around the room with the heels on. I kept looking desperately at the clock as it reached 7:10. Was he going to come? Was I getting myself excited for no reason?

Then there was a knock at the door. I ran over and flung it open, realizing that maybe I should have waited so it didn't look like I was standing obsessively at the door even though I was.

"Hi Sasuke!" I said, trying not to sound nervous.

"Hi." He said.

He looked a little blank. "Is something wrong?" I asked.

"No." he replied after a moment's pause. "Nothing."

"Okay." I said, shutting the door behind me. I figured I'd tell him about the group plan. "I hope you don't mind that I invited some people along."

"Some people?" he said.

"Yeah!" I said. "We're only hanging out after all. I tried setting up Hinata and Naruto since they OBVIOUSLY like each other. Then I figured I'd try to get Lee and Sakura together since Lee's liked Sakura since before FOREVER and Sakura might have some feelings for him…"

I noticed that he still looked a little blank.

"Sasuke…are you sure you're all right?" I asked.

"Uh…yeah—" he said.

I asked everyone to meet us at a little club that played music and served food. It was a neat place for us to hang out and maybe potentially lose everyone else.

"What is this?" Sasuke said, making his first declarative statement of the night so far. "It's not a restaurant."

Of course it wasn't! "It's a club." I said.

"Oh. I knew that."

"Oh look!" I said, waving to Naruto and Hinata. "There's Naruto and Hinata!"

"Naruto and Hinata?" Sasuke said.

I grabbed him by the arm and pulled him over to where Hinata and Naruto were sitting.

"Hey guys!" said Naruto.

"Hi Naruto, hi Hinata!" I greeted them.

"Hey Ino, didn't you say that Sakura was coming?" Naruto said.

"She said she might come if she felt like it." I said, sitting down in a chair. Sasuke sat down next to me without uttering a word.

"Hey guys!!" yelled Lee excitedly as he ran over. We all said hi to him, but he wasn't concerned with us. "Is Sakura not here?"

"Weren't you picking her up?" I asked since we had talked about that.

"She wasn't at her house so I figured she was already here." Lee answered.

Lee sat down next to Sasuke with a heavy sigh. I felt really bad for him. I knew Sakura wasn't going to show up.

"She'll show up." Naruto said.

The air felt really tense so I figured now was a good time to get away.

"Um…hey, how about we dance?" I said, turning to Sasuke. "Sasuke? Do you know how?"

"Uh—" he said. "…Yeah…"

"Okay, let's go!" I said, pulling him out of his chair. I figured he didn't really know how to dance because, really, where would he have ever learned? So I put his hands where they needed to be and started us off. I began to lead only because he wasn't. It started to make me laugh because I knew that he didn't know HE was supposed to lead.

"Sasuke, you're supposed to lead." I said, trying not to laugh.

"What?"

"You're letting me lead." I told him.

"Um…okay?"

"That's okay, I don't mind." I said, figuring it was pointless to explain it any further.

"So um…" Sasuke said suddenly after a few minutes. "That was uh…nice of you. To set up Hinata and Naruto. And Lee and Sakura."

I looked back at the table to see Naruto and Hinata still sitting there at the table. Why didn't he ask her to dance? "Yeah…" I said. "But I don't think Naruto likes Hinata very much. But she likes him so much! The same with Lee to Sakura and Naruto to Sakura. And Sakura to…" I suddenly felt awkward. What if Sasuke had some deep hidden feelings for Sakura? "…you…"

I let go of him. I felt like everything I was doing was wrong.

"Sasuke, I'm forcing you into this." I said. "I'm so sorry."

"Forcing me into it?" he asked.

"It's okay," I said, feeling incredibly stupid. "I didn't have any right to do this sort of thing to you."

"What sort of thing?" he questioned.

"Are you kidding me?" I said, feeling like I was going to start crying. "You don't want to date me. You never have and you never will. I'm sorry."

I was trying really hard not to cry.

"Ino, I'm sorry." He said.

I hadn't been expecting THAT. "What?"

"I don't know." He replied.

"Who do you think you are?!" came the voice of Sakura. I turned around to see her standing there. "How DARE you do such a thing! You ask Sasuke out behind my back and trick him into coming out with you and then you try to cover it up by making it a group get together thing! You KNEW I loved Sasuke!!"

I didn't even know how to react.

"Sasuke, look deep into my eyes." She said to Sasuke.

"I'm looking." He said.

"And tell me you don't love me." Sasuke said.

Oh no! Oh no! My head was going to explode. If I had to hear him falter, I don't know what I'd do! Was he faltering? I looked at him, trying not to look anxious.

"I don't love you."

I felt like cheering, but that would have been rude.

"NOW," she continued even though she should have left. "Look deep into my eyes again!"

"And?" Sasuke said.

"And tell me that you love Ino."

Now he was faltering.

"Well?!" Sakura said when she noticed he couldn't answer.

"I…" he started. Oh, don't say it, Sasuke! Don't let her force you into saying something is untrue! If he said he loved me just to make Sakura go away, I would completely understand!

"I…" he tried again.

I couldn't stand this. Sakura standing there looking so demanding and Sasuke standing there looking so helpless. "Sakura, don't put Sasuke in this situation!" I said. "You're a terrible person and you seriously need to reevaluate everything you stand for!"

"How dare you, Ino." Said Sakura. "I thought you were my FRIEND."

We hadn't been friends for years. "Well, I thought so too." I said. "But not anymore."

That got through to her. She finally left.

I turned to Sasuke who didn't look like he was going to pursue her. Sakura hadn't apologized, so I would have to. "I'm SO sorry, Sasuke." I said.

"It's not your fault." He said. "I know you just invited everyone else so that I wouldn't feel as awkward, and not so you could make it look like we were just hanging out instead of having—"

He stopped. "A date?" I filled in.

"Yeah, one of those." He said, clearing his throat. "But you didn't have to."

"I wanted to." I said.

"I'll walk you home." Sasuke said.

He wanted it to be over. I followed him out of the club.

"I hope Naruto and Hinata's date goes okay." I said out loud.

He only nodded. I felt so awful.

When we reached the front steps of my house, I couldn't leave him without apologizing one last time. "Sasuke, I'm sorry." I said.

"WHY do you keep saying that?" he said.

"Because I AM sorry!" I said, stomping my foot. I felt my ankle collapse under me because the heel snapped off and I fell forward, grabbing onto Sasuke to keep myself from falling down the stairs.

I was so embarrassed. He probably thought I meant for that to happen.

"I didn't mean for that to happen." I assured him. "And these heels were really expensive too… they were my mom's. I borrowed them from her because I didn't have anything that would match this dress…it's actually Tenten's since I don't have any dresses and—"

I couldn't finish my sentence because he suddenly kissed me.

Don't end! Don't end!

Everything has to end. He pulled away and looked at me. I stood up, not knowing what to say.

"Good night." He said finally.

That helped. "Good night." I answered, opening the door.

I shut the door behind me.

"Yes, yes, yes!!" I cheered but quickly threw my hand over my mouth so he wouldn't hear me.


	32. Rock Lee: Dashed Dreams

Rock Lee; 3 Years Later

Age 16

-Dashed Dreams-

The day had started out like any other day.

I woke up early, trained my hardest throughout the entire day and then called it quits once I couldn't move anymore.

Oh, how I missed those long days training with Gai! I became a chuunin just last year and it was GREAT! But there was one thing that could make it better; a mission or two with Gai! I had yet to have one of those.

I've had a few missions with Neji, which was fun. I lost touch with him once he became a chuunin and I stayed a genin, but once I became a chuunin, I saw him a lot again. And he's gotten to be such a good ninja! He works so hard. But not as hard as me of course!

Because I have no natural talent, it is imperative that I train every day! ALL day! People like Neji can skip a day and make up for the lost time at his whim!

I grabbed a jump rope.

I wished Sakura were here.

It had been a while since I had last seen Sakura. That was one of the biggest downsides of being a chuunin. I saw less of the people I loved like Gai and Sakura! Also, Tenten was kind of drifting away, but she tried to stay in contact with me as much as possible! Or, maybe that was ME trying to stay in contact with HER…

But anyway, just when I was about to start jump roping, I heard the phone ring.

"Hello, Rock Residence, this is Lee speaking, how may I help you?" I greeted the person who had called us.

I listened. I let her do all the talking.

"YAMANAKA INO, YOU ARE A GREAT FRIEND!!" I shouted, slamming the phone down on the receiver.

Truly a gift from the gods!

Ino had set me up with an ANGEL; Sakura! I was to pick her up at seven o'clock sharp at her house and travel with her down to the club where I would meet up with Ino and her date! …Sasuke? Ino is going out with Sasuke? Oh, no wonder Sakura was to be MY date!!

I felt like I was going to blow up if I didn't tell someone!!

Neji lived the closest to me!!

I took my weights off, accidentally making two craters in my front yard, so I could get over there as fast as I could. But it's okay since we had about a million other craters in the front yard.

I knew Neji hated it when I went in his window, but his Hyuuga family members had started to turn me away at the door. I guess they just didn't like me.

If Neji didn't want me coming in his window, he should lock it!

I opened it up and jumped in. Neji had his back to me at first. He was closing his bedroom door and turned around just in time to see me.

"Hi Neji!" I greeted him.

Neji jumped three feet up into the air and nearly fell over. Funny, I would think with his incredible Hyuuga 360 degree vision, he would not be so surprised at my arrival.

He regained his composer.

"Lee, what have we talked about concerning coming in my window?" he said in a very condescending tone.

I didn't want to talk about windows! But I especially didn't want to talk about the PAST! I wanted to talk about the FUTURE!! My future date with the one and only SAKURA!!

I grabbed him on the shoulders and shook him to make sure he was giving me his undivided attention. "GUESS WHAT!!" I yelled as loud as I could.

He pushed me away. "I don't want to know." He said.

I gasped. How could he?! This was one of the most important things in my entire life and he was shrugging it off as if it was nothing!! I was sixteen years old and this was only my first date!! WITH SAKRUA NO LESS!!!

"Yes you do!!" I cried, getting down on my knees and BEGGING him to want to know just because I wanted to tell someone so badly!

"Fine." He said, crossing his arms. "What is it?"

"Ino called me earlier today and she said that she and a bunch of people are going down to a club and that she set me up with Sakura!" I explained, leaping to my feet and bouncing up and down.

"Wow, Lee. I'm so happy for you."

?!?!?!?!? No way!! Neji has NEVER reacted like that before!! He must have been REALLY happy for me!! "Really?!" I gasped. "Neji, you're such a friend!!" I felt like hugging him, but I knew he would hate it so I didn't.

"And you know me so well." He said.

He was right. I did know him so well. "I do!" I agreed.

Neji put his head in his hand, though I don't know why.

I felt so warm and fuzzy that Neji and I had finally connected!! This day was already so much better than I had expected when I had first awakened!!

"Well, you've told me your news." Neji said. "Now I wouldn't mind if you left. I have places to go. And close the window on your way out."

Places to go?? Maybe Neji was coming to the club too!!

"Where are you going?" I asked. If he WASN'T going, I was definitely going to ask him if he wanted to come.

"I have to go and speak at the academy because I was the number one rookie four years ago." He replied. "It's not like you know anything about that though."

Oh yeah! I had almost forgotten that Neji had been the number one rookie from his year. Hehe, and I had graduated at the bottom of the class too. Looking back at that, it makes me laugh sometimes!

Occasionally, I wish _I _was the number one rookie.

Maybe I should tell him that.

"Wow!" I said. "I wish _I _was the number one rookie so _I _could speak at the academy!! Instead, I have a date with Sakura!!"

Neji gave me his evil eye, but I decided to disregard it.

I had places to go too!!

"Well, I have to go and tell Tenten!!" I said, going to the window. "Then I'm going to get ready and then I'm going to go and pick up Sakura and then I'm going to go to the club!!"

"Good for you." Said Neji, going over to the window too.

"Have fun speaking to the little kids!"

"Go." he said. He was excited for me!!

"I'll tell you all about my date tomorrow!" I promised him.

"Just go." he said, still excited for me!!

I jumped out the window, but then I remembered I had to ask him if he wanted to come too! I can't believe I almost forgot! "You should come along after you're done!!" I said, sticking my head in.

"Please go."

Wow, I had never seen Neji so excited! I guess I should go!!

He shut the window on me, trying to make me leave faster.

A guy couldn't have a better friend!

I sprinted over to Tenten's house and I was just about to open HER window and barge in on her when I saw her inside getting ready. Was she going to the club too? Maybe now wasn't a good time to bother her. She had to get ready. I wonder who her date was?

Besides, I was running out of time. I had to run home!!

Oh, I'm home! I love being fast!

I got dressed in my best green tuxedo and looked at myself up and down in the mirror. Then I checked the clock. Almost 7:00! Time to pick up Sakura!!

I strode casually on my way over to Sakura's house because I didn't want to show up with my heart beating fast than the speed of light. I stood outside and practiced what I was going to say.

"Dearest Sakura," I tried. That sounded too… twelve-year-old. "_Adoring_ Sakura…" That sounded more sixteen. "Surely you have heard of the…the…" What was a good word for 'get together'?

I was unable to practice anymore because the door suddenly swung open. I was in mid bow, so I sprung up to face the person who had opened it, hoping it was Sakura.

But no, it was Sakura's mother.

"Good evening, Mrs. Haruno!" I said.

"Oh, hi Lee!" she greeted me pleasantly.

"Is Sakura at home?" I inquired.

"Oh no…I'm sorry, she's not." Sakura's mother replied.

That was the one response I had not been expecting.

"What?" I said.

"I'm pretty sure she left to go to some kind of party thing at the local club…" her mother replied vaguely.

OH I SEE! Ino had told me one thing and Sakura another. I was to meet Sakura THERE, not pick her up! Oh, how silly I had been!

"Thank you!" I said with a final bow.

I didn't want to be late so I walked more quickly, tying to keep my loud, excited heartbeat under control.

It wasn't long before I was running. I think I may have actually plowed someone over on my way into the club and was greatly relieved when I finally saw Ino, Sasuke, Naruto and Hinata sitting at a table.

But wherever was my dearest—er—adoring Sakura?

"Hey guys!!" I yelled over the loud music of the club. I quickly made one last inspection to make sure Sakura was not there. "Is Sakura not here?"

"Weren't you picking her up?" Ino asked.

Uh oh. What did this mean? Was this just one big huge joke that everyone was playing on me? "She wasn't at her house so I figured she was already here." I answered.

I hoped maybe she had just gotten lost or something on the way. I sat down next to Sasuke who was, contrary to popular belief, there, looking longingly at the empty seat in between Naruto and I.

"She'll show up." Naruto said.

I didn't want to ruin anyone else's time so I tried not to sigh too much. Ino eventually pulled Sasuke up out of his chair and on to the dance floor. Why did Ino end up with the one she loved but I did not?

I kept glancing around the room. Maybe she didn't know where we were sitting.

"Hinata," Naruto said. "Do you see Sakura around ANYWHERE?"

"No…" Hinata replied.

I kept looking. But, if Sakura was here then she wasn't making herself known. Perhaps she had come in and was waiting for us at a different table thinking that we had abandoned her?

"Maybe she didn't see us when she came in!" I said. "What if she's sitting by herself?"

"Let's go look for her!" said Naruto.

Even though the last person I wanted to team up with was the rival for my love, it was the only option I had. "Okay!" I said, jumping out of my seat. Naruto appeared to be at the 'get together' with Hinata anyway. Maybe he had made the switch to Hinata and was only being nice by volunteering to help me find MY date!

"Do you see her?" I asked Naruto as he got up on a chair and scanned the crowd. I was a good half-foot taller than Naruto so it seemed ludicrous that he was standing up on the chair instead of me but I doubted it would make much of a difference.

"No…" he sighed, jumping down.

"I can't give up!" I said.

The two of us searched and searched but Sakura was nowhere to be found. I started to wish that Neji were there so he could just use his Byakugan to find her in nothing flat. Then again, Neji probably wouldn't do that just because the thought of using his Byakugan for something like that would offend him.

"How disappointing!" I said after we had circled the club two or three times.

"Let's try standing by the door just in case she comes." Naruto said.

"Okay!" I said.

The two of us went over to the door and stood there. It was pretty silent between the two of us. I just wanted Sakura to get there so I could dance with her.

Suddenly, I saw her. Sakura!

"Sakura!!" I exclaimed. "This is like a dream!!"

But she looked ever so upset. She pushed through the middle of both of us and ran away. I was going to chase her, but girls tended to like being alone for a bit so they can sort out what's in their heads.

Naruto made a start to run after her, but I grabbed his shirt collar and pulled him back.

"What's the big idea?!" Naruto demanded.

"She needs some time to think!" I said.

"She needs ME to comfort her!" Naruto said ignorantly.

"Trust me, Naruto." I said. "That's the way girls work. Let's head back to the table."

Naruto grumbled in protest but the two of us went back to the table anyway.

Hinata was still sitting there.

"I have NO reason to be here if Sakura isn't." Naruto said. "None whatsoever. It's pointless. All I'm doing is sitting here."

"Well, at least Ino and Sasuke are having a good time." I sighed, always trying to look on the bright side of things.

"That's not fair." Said Naruto. "I wish Sakura were here."

Almost as soon as I had commented about how Ino and Sasuke were having a good time, the two of them turned around and abruptly left the club without coming over to us and telling us where they were going. I guess I was happy for them, but also really really jealous.

Was I ever going to get a girlfriend? I was sixteen and no one had ever even looked at me in a romantic manner before.

"Um…Naruto." Hinata said suddenly. "Please excuse me. I have to use the bathroom. I'm not feeling well."

"Oh, I'm sorry Hinata." Said Naruto.

Hinata hung around for a moment or so, and then left. I called after her, "Feel better soon!" but it's not like I could follow her or anything since she was going to the GIRL'S bathroom after all.

"Hey Lee, do you think I'll ever get a date?" Naruto asked me.

I felt like asking him the same question.

"Oh, I don't doubt it, Naruto." I answered.

I never did ask him if he thought I would. I was far too embarrassed because I didn't want to seem desperate. Though, sometimes, I really was.


	33. Nara Shikamaru: Stand In

Nara Shikamaru; 3 Years Later

Age 15

-Stand In-

It was early in the morning when I heard someone wander into my bedroom. The figure leaned over me for a moment and then left. I figured it had to be my father checking to see if I was awake.

Although I was awake, I was not ready to get up.

I must have lied in bed for another hour or so before I finally opened my eyes.

I pushed myself up off my bed and got up.

I had no missions today and, if I had not yet been summoned by the Hokage for something frivolous then I could assume I had a reasonably free day. I went into the bathroom to put my hair up.

That's when I caught sight of something on my forehead.

After putting all my hair up, I leaned in to see it was writing.

"_Come to the Hokage's office at your earliest convenience."_

"You have GOT to be kidding me!" I found myself yelling out loud.

Wouldn't it had just been easier to WAKE me up and tell me that I needed to come to the Hokage's office instead of scrawling ink across my forehead? Did they PURPOSELY try to give me the illusion of possibly having the day off for once?

Now I had to take time to wash it off my forehead and then get dressed.

"Shikamaru, is there a problem?" my dad asked as I came down the stairs.

He must have observed my perturbed expression. Luckily, I had been able to get all the writing off my forehead but it certainly wasn't a pleasant surprise after I had gotten up.

"No problem." I said, pulling my vest out of my closet.

"Raido stopped by here earlier." My father said. "He said the Hokage needed you in her office."

"I got his message." I said grudgingly.

I pulled my vest out of the closet and put it on. "I'll be back a little later after I find out what she wants." I said.

"Take your time." My father said. "Your mother is on the warpath."

"So what else is new?" I said.

"I HEARD THAT!!" my mother screamed from the other room.

"Okay, I'm outta here." I told him, suddenly not so unenthusiastic about leaving the house.

I started walking towards the office. I was in no hurry. The message that had been left for me was that I was to arrive at my earliest convenience.

When I was about half way there, I saw Chouji. Or rather, he saw me.

"Good afternoon, Shikamaru!" he said, jogging up to me.

"Hi Chouji." I replied.

"Fine day, don't you think?" he said with a sigh.

"I've seen better." I said.

"Oh Shikamaru!" he exclaimed. "That's not the way to look at things!"

"If you say so, Chouji." I answered.

"Hey, where are you going anyway?" Chouji asked after a bit of a pause.

"The Hokage wanted to see me." I replied.

"Oh, what about training?"

I stopped. "Training?" I said.

"Remember?" Chouji said. "You said you'd help me train today!"

I slapped my forehead. I had completely forgot that I had promised Chouji just a few days earlier that I would help him train. The Chuunin Selection Exam was coming up and he wanted to brush up on a few of his skills so that Asuma would nominate him. After all, now that Ino was a chuunin, he was the only one left on the team. I don't know whether that helped him or hurt him, but he told me that it certainly made him feel lonely.

"Oh…um…" I said. "I…can't today…"

"That's okay Shikamaru!" said Chouji with a smile.

"Can we get a rain check?" I requested.

"Of course!" Chouji said. "You should hurry though! I don't want to keep you from your important meeting!"

"Thanks for understanding, Chouji." I said, waving to him.

I felt bad for him. He had probably been waiting eagerly for this training day since I told him I'd do it.

This had better be important…

I climbed the stairs, skipping two at a time. Maybe, if I finished fast enough, I'd still have time to train with Chouji.

"You called for me?" I said, opening the door only to see that the Hokage was not sitting at her desk. There were a few ninjas in the room, but the Hokage wasn't there.

"Oh, thank goodness you're here!" said Raido. "We've been waiting for the longest time!"

"What's going on?" I asked.

"It seems the Hokage has taken a vacation." Said Raido, picking up a piece of paper and showing it to me. "And left the village in your care until she returns."

I think I must have looked stupefied at this explanation because he handed the note to me.

"_Raido—_" I read out loud. _"I apologize for giving you such short notice but I believe it is imperative that I take a well deserved vacation from my duties as the Hokage. I will return as soon as I can but, in the meantime, I would like to request that you call Nara Shikamaru to fill my position until I return. I trust him with the safekeeping of the village, and I would like you to treat him with the utmost respect that you have towards me. I have faith that our village will see another day."_

I looked up from the note.

The ninjas were looking at me.

"This is some kind of joke, right?" I said, expecting the Hokage to leap out from under her desk and laugh at my face for believing it for only a minute.

"I suppose you're acting Hokage now." Said Raido.

I blinked.

"What?" I said. It was impossible to believe that they were going along with it.

"The Hokage trusts you and so do we!" said Raido. "And, if it's her orders then we cannot neglect to fulfill them!"

I put a hand on my head.

"Are you all right?" one ninja asked.

"Ow." I said. "My head."

I was only fifteen years old. Did the Hokage not consider the fact that I was FAR from mature enough to deal with all the chaos that it is to be Hokage? She just threw me into the position without first discussing it with me or getting my consent.

"Excuse me, Miss Hokage…" came a voice from outside the room. I turned around to see someone I recognized, but couldn't put a name to her face. She looked about the room. "Is the Hokage not in?"

"The Hokage is on a vacation." Said Raido. "Nara Shikamaru is filling in."

"Oh, okay." She said with a nod and then turned to me. "I'm from the Inuzuka clan. My brother is Inuzuka Kiba. Has he, by any chance, returned from his mission yet?"

I looked around for support, but all the other ninjas were only staring at me.

"I'm sorry to put this on you…" she continued. "But he's been gone for almost a week and his predicted return time was over two days ago. He's only fifteen years old and he's on the mission all by himself."

"Uh…well…" I began. I had to say something to set her at ease. I wandered over to the Hokage's desk where all the mission scrolls sat. "Well… when a ninja is late from returning home from a mission…" I trailed off, trying to remember protocol. "After three days… a search party is sent out."

"Yes, I'm familiar with that." She said. "After all, the search parties are normally filled with people from my clan. But he's only a genin and he's alone—"

"Well…" I said, but I hadn't meant to interrupt her. "Though it is highly plausible that he is merely lagging in his return…I think this constitutes a small search party."

"Oh wonderful!" she exclaimed happily. "I volunteer."

I didn't know if I was doing the right thing. "Very well." I said. "If there is the chance that you do not find him within two hours… return and a large search party will be sent out."

"I will!" she said, going to the door. "Thank you, Mr. Hokage!"

With that, she was gone.

I froze at the sound of what she had said. Had I just been called 'Mr. Hokage'?

"Two chuunins have just returned from their mission." Said a ninja I didn't know as he came in.

"And I take it that Inuzuka Kiba is not among them?" I said. The ninja shook his head. I sat down at the Hokage's desk. It felt somehow forbidden and foreign to me, as if I didn't belong there. Actually, I didn't really belong there at all.

I guess there would be no time for training with Chouji today.

"All right…" I said. "You may…send them in…"

He bowed. It was amazing for everyone to bow to my every whim like this.

"We completed our mission." Came a family voice as Ino came in the door followed soon thereafter by Sasuke. The two of them stared at me and didn't say anything for a bit. Finally, Ino spat out, "Shikamaru?! You're not the Hokage!"

Yes, this was quite apparent to me. "Yeah well…" I said. "The Hokage's on vacation. I'm filling in."

"Aren't there OTHER people who are more qualified that could fill in?" Sasuke questioned.

That's something _I _would like to know. But I guess everyone just liked to pick on me.

"I guess." I said, opening the scroll that read when the two of them would receive payment for their labors. I checked off that they had returned on time and noted that they would be paid in the morning. "You'll receive your payment tomorrow morning." I said.

They nodded.

But didn't go anywhere anytime soon.

"You are dismissed." I said.

They both instinctively bowed their heads slightly and left the office.

"Excellent job, Shikamaru!" said Raido. "Frankly, I think I may have buckled under the pressure of having to fill in for the Hokage, especially at the drop of the hat! But you are handling it quite nicely."

How was I supposed to respond to that?

"Okay." I said. "Thanks."

What followed was the aspect of being the Hokage that you never hear about. I had to fill out mission plans and send ninjas off on missions. In addition, I had to receive ninjas back from their missions.

But worst of all, I had to tell people that the Hokage was not here and that I was filling in.

Surprisingly, it didn't really seem to freak people out that I was sitting at the Hokage's desk. This is how an exchange would be;

"Miss Hokage I—oh, you're not the Hokage."

"She's on a vacation."

"So you're filling in?"

"Yeah."

"Oh, okay. In that case, Mr. Hokage…"

It shocked me that they were all so easily just calling me 'Mr. Hokage'. That was probably the most difficult part of the whole ordeal.

About two hours later, Kiba's sister arrived at the door again. She was covered in mud and dirt, but she looked quite upset.

"The smell of the mud obscured the tracking!" she said.

"So…you were unsuccessful?" I said.

"Correct." She said. "In addition, I found a large trap and a sign of a struggle."

It was time to organize a real search party.

"Where's Shizune?" I said, standing up. She was usually in charge of these kinds of things. "Hang on one second." I told everyone in the room.

"Wait, I'll get her, Mr. Hokage." Said Raido.

Maybe they were only calling me that to make me feel special. But it wasn't working.

He took off and I returned to the desk as Kiba's sister paced.

I could see why she was worried.

"You know, I'm sure he's fine." I said. "The Hokage wouldn't have sent him on this mission alone unless she was confident that he'd be able to succeed alone."

She nodded.

That's when Raido and Shizune came in.

"What is it—" she started. "Wait…you're not the Hokage."

"She's on vacation." I sighed. "And I'm filling in. We need a search party."

"Absolutely." Shizune said with a nod.

"We're looking for Inuzuka Kiba." I said. "A genin. He left almost a week ago and was scheduled to return over two days ago."

Shizune looked at Kiba's sister and then back at me.

"Inuzuka?" she said. "As in the clan that has dogs?"

"Yes!" said Kiba's sister. "He's my younger brother and he's only fifteen!"

"He got back a little over an hour ago." Shizune said.

Everyone in the room was silent.

"He what?" I said.

"He came back from his mission and asked me to heal his dog." Shizune answered. "Why, did he not check in?"

"No, it must have slipped his mind." I said, feeling quite annoyed.

"That's Kiba!" laughed his sister, though I don't know how she could laugh after he had put her through all that. "He's so forgetful sometimes! But he's really very sweet."

I didn't care that Kiba was forgetful but sweet. He had caused panic because he didn't come to me to check in.

"Do you want me to go and collect him?" Raido asked.

"That won't be necessary!" said Kiba's sister. "I'll be sure to give him the beating of his life so he'll never forget again!"

"Be sure to tell him the importance of checking in with the Hokage." I said.

She nodded and with that, she was gone. And I wasn't entirely sure if she was joking or not.

"Well, Mr. Hokage, what's next on the list of things to do?" said Raido.

I sighed and slumped down in my chair.

"I don't know." I said. "How about we find the Hokage and bring her back? This is too troublesome."


	34. Hyuuga Hinata: My Knight

Hyuuga Hinata; 3 Years Later

Age 15

-My Knight-

"Do you do this EVERY time Kiba goes on a mission?"

I looked up. Shino was standing over me. After I made eye contact with him, he sat down next to me so I wouldn't have to look up anymore. Kiba was on a mission and was scheduled to come back two days ago. I was nervous about him so I waited outside the Hokage's office every once and a while just in case he returned.

"Not normally." I answered with a smile.

"What makes this time so special?" he asked.

"I'm just worried about him." I replied.

"Well, we know he's not lost." Shino said after a pause.

"Getting lost is impossible for Kiba." I said.

I wasn't really concerned about Kiba getting lost, though. Now that we were older, we weren't required to go on missions with only our team. It was getting lonely only training with Kurenai since Shino couldn't find time to train with me. Kiba was still only a genin, but he went on other missions a lot.

"So what made you come here at this time?" Shino asked.

"I got a feeling Kiba would come back today." I said, hugging my knees.

But he didn't come back.

Shino and I stared down the road at where the returnees usually came from to inform the Hokage they had returned.

I hadn't even really told my father that I was going out. I had been gone over an hour and he was probably beginning to wonder where I was. As much as I wanted to stay behind and make sure Kiba got back, I didn't want to worry my father.

"I should be getting home." I said, standing up.

Shino only watched me stand up and then nodded.

"Are you leaving too?" I asked as I began to walk away, but slowly so I could hear Shino's response.

Shino didn't give a response. He just sat there and didn't say a word. Maybe… he was worried too? After all, there was no reason for him to be in this area.

When I got into my house, my father was there.

I thought he was going to be angry.

"Hinata, I was just looking for you." He said.

Yes, he was definitely going to be angry.

"Your friend, Ino, called." He said.

I blinked.

"She called?" I repeated.

He nodded.

"What did she say?" I asked quietly.

"She says she wants you to come to the local club at seven o'clock for a special surprise." My father replied.

Why was he even relaying this message to me? He'd never let me go.

"Oh…but…I can't go…" I said.

"Why not?" he said.

I thought about this response. Was he saying that it was all right for me to go?

"I guess I can go after all." I said with a smile.

He nodded and left the room.

Seven o'clock? That was only an hour from now! I had to get ready!

I hadn't really done anything strenuous today so I didn't think I needed a shower. I got half dressed and then decided that I should take a shower so I did. As soon as I stepped in the shower, I realized that this meant I would have to blow dry my hair so it wouldn't be wet when I went to the club. I had never been to the club before. I didn't know what to wear.

I got out and hurried to my room. It was impossible to pick out something to wear. What should I wear?

"Hinata?" came a voice as Hanabi's head poked in the door.

"Yes, Hanabi?" I said.

"Are you going on a date?" she asked.

That embarrassed me. "No!" I said. "I'm just going out with a few friends!"

"Are any of them boys?" she asked.

It hit me just then that I didn't even know. I didn't even know if Ino was going to be there. "I don't know…" I said.

"You should dress just in case there is a boy there." She said.

"Hanabi, what do you know?" I said. "You're only ten."

Hanabi shrugged and shut the door.

What if there was a boy there? What if it was…Naruto?

I blushed just thinking about him.

So I decided to dress as if Naruto was going to be there.

At 6:45, I couldn't wait any longer. I had done my hair, but not anything too crazy. If it was too different then it would look like I had someone to impress and I didn't want to look like that. I went to the front door and was stopped by my father.

"What time do you plan on being home?" he asked.

"Um…" I said. I didn't even know what I was going to do once I got there so I didn't know how to answer.

"Eleven." He said.

"Okay." I agreed immediately. That was much more generous than I had expected. If he had given me another moment to answer, I probably would have said nine o'clock. "Bye dad…"

He opened up the door for me and I went outside.

The door opened up again. I was afraid it was my father telling me that I had to be back earlier or that I couldn't go at all, but upon turning around I saw Hanabi standing there.

"I just wanted to see what you were wearing." She said. But then she gasped. "Hinata! You're not wearing any make-up!"

"I don't want to wear any make-up…" I said.

"You have to wear some make-up!" she argued. "At least some lipstick! I'll be right back!"

She shut the door and ran off. I felt like running off too. I didn't want to wear make-up, but I didn't want to make my little sister feel bad. If it was only going to be lipstick, I figured I'd just wash it off when I got to the club.

After a minute or two, she came back outside. But she was carrying a lot more than lipstick.

"Here!" she said, signaling for me to bend down so she could reach my face. I didn't know where she had learned how to put make-up on at her young age, but she caked my face with the stuff in only a few minutes. "There! Now go before you're late!"

"Um…thanks Hanabi…" I said nervously, turning away and going towards the club. I now had no idea what I looked like and was blindly going to a place that I had never been to with a nondescript group of people.

My heart leapt up into my throat when I saw Naruto standing at the entrance, looking around.

"N…n…" I stuttered. I cleared my throat and went over to him. "Naruto! Hi…"

"Oh, hey Hinata!" said Naruto. "I almost didn't recognize you with all that make-up on!"

I felt really embarrassed and put a hand to my face. "Oh…my sister…" I started.

"Hey, have you seen Sakura?" he asked.

"…N…no…" I said. "I just…I just got here…"

"Oh well." Said Naruto. "Maybe she's inside. You want to go inside?"

I nodded. Maybe this was the special surprise that Ino had mentioned.

"Let's sit over there!" Naruto said. "That way, Sakura will be able to see us when she comes in!"

"Oh-okay…" I said hesitantly. Was Sakura all he could think of?

We hadn't been sitting down for more than two minutes when I saw Ino waving to us with Sasuke by her side.

"Hey guys!" said Naruto as they came over.

"Hi Naruto, hi Hinata!" Ino greeted us.

"Hi Sasuke…" I said quietly, but he only nodded at me.

"Hey Ino, didn't you say that Sakura was coming?" Naruto said.

"She said she might come if she felt like it." Ino said.

Sakura really was all Naruto could think of.

"Hey guys!!" yelled Lee as he ran over. "Is Sakura not here?"

It seemed like everyone just wanted to know if Sakura was coming. Lee and the others spoke some more about Sakura, but I was feeling very awkward. Maybe everyone would have preferred if I were Sakura. Especially Naruto. I bet he expected to find Sakura here.

"Um…hey, how about we dance?" Ino said suddenly. "Sasuke? Do you know how?"

"Uh—" Sasuke said. "…Yeah…"

"Okay, let's go!" said Ino, grabbing Sasuke and pulling him up.

Ask me, Naruto…

I wished I could be as confident as that. I wanted to dance with Naruto, but I was too shy to ask him. He was sitting there, looking around the room for Sakura, and Lee was doing the same thing. I touched the condensation on my glass and waited, hoping Naruto would ask me.

Ask me to dance, Naruto. Ask me!

"Hinata," Naruto said. I looked up at him. He was going to ask me! "Do you see Sakura around ANYWHERE?"

I had gotten myself excited over nothing. "No…" I said.

"Maybe she didn't see us when she came in!" Lee said. "What if she's sitting by herself?"

"Let's go look for her!" said Naruto.

"Okay!" said Lee.

Lee and Naruto then stood up and wandered off to look for Sakura.

So then I was sitting at the table by myself.

It was funny. I had waited so long to get the opportunity to spend time with Naruto like this, but now I was kind of wishing that someone else were here.

I shook my head to get that thought out. This was my dream! To come some place with Naruto!

I caught something pink out of the corner of my eye, and turned around to see Sakura standing on the dance floor talking to Sasuke and Ino. She looked angry.

I quickly glanced around the room, searching for Naruto and Lee to tell them Sakura was there, but I couldn't find them.

Sakura then stomped off, almost exactly when Lee and Naruto came back.

"I have NO reason to be here if Sakura isn't." said Naruto. "None whatsoever. It's pointless. All I'm doing is sitting here."

I pleated my skirt nervously. Was this really Naruto?

"Well, at least Ino and Sasuke are having a good time." Lee sighed. I looked over at them, but tried not to stare. They didn't really look like they were having a good time.

"That's not fair." Said Naruto. "I wish Sakura were here."

Ino and Sasuke left the building without coming back to us. Were they really going to leave me alone with Lee and Naruto who would do nothing but wish Sakura were there all night?

"Um…Naruto." I said, standing up. "Please excuse me. I have to use the bathroom. I'm not feeling well."

"Oh, I'm sorry Hinata." Said Naruto.

I waited just a moment to make sure he didn't offer to go with me, but he was already back to searching for Sakura. So I nodded and went off to the bathroom.

I turned the corner and pushed the door open as fast as I could. I ran over to the sink and looked in the mirror, getting a first look at myself with make-up on. Now I really did feel sick.

I felt really stupid as I washed the make-up off my face. I already began to feel a lot better after it was all off and I looked like myself again.

"Naruto…" I sighed. "You're not what I imagined…"

Suddenly, the door opened. Kiba was standing there, looking right at me as if he knew I would be here. He looked really dirty and kinda tired as if he had just gotten back from his mission.

"Kiba!" I said. "You're back from your mission! You're all right!" Then I looked around. "And you're in the girl's bathroom!!"

"Hinata, YOU'RE in the BOY'S bathroom." Kiba said, pointing to the sign on the door.

I felt my face get really hot and red. "I don't believe I did that!" I gasped, running towards the door and under Kiba's arm so I was back out in the hallway. Even though I had only run a short distance, I was out of breath because I was so embarrassed.

"It's all right, Hinata!" said Kiba, coming out as well. "I won't tell anyone!"

"What a coincidence that you're here too!" I said. "When did you get back from your mission?"

"Around six thirty." Kiba replied.

I felt really bad that I wasn't there waiting for him when he came back and that I had been going out to a club instead. I mean, he could have been seriously wounded.

"Are you all right?" I asked. "Any injuries?"

"No." he said, shaking his head.

"Kiba, I was really stupid tonight." I confessed.

"Hinata, I HIGHLY doubt that." Kiba laughed.

I laughed a little too.

"No, I really was." I said with a nod. "But I finally realized something tonight that I should have realized a long time ago."

"Oh?" said Kiba. "And what's that?"

I couldn't say it. How could I tell him that I realized that I didn't actually like Naruto? After all, he didn't even know that I originally liked Naruto.

I shook my head. "Nothing." I said. "It's nothing."

Kiba shrugged. "Okay, Hinata." He said. That's Kiba. He always seemed to know when he needed to press for answers and when it was best to back off. "So… do you want to go home?"

"Yes." I said. "I really do."

"I'll walk you home if you want."

"No," I said. I needed some time to think. Kiba's good at comforting me, but I couldn't always just look to Kiba for consolation whenever I was feeling down on myself. "Thank you, though. I just need a little time to clear my head."

"You sure?" he said.

I nodded again. "Yes, I'm positive." I said.

"All right." He said. "Whatever you want, Hinata."

I made my way towards the exit.

I stopped at the door and turned around to look at Kiba. He was still standing there watching me leave. Maybe now wasn't a good time to be alone.

"Actually…" I said. "Could you…walk home with me?"

He smiled. "Whatever you want, Hinata."


	35. Hyuuga Neji: The God Awful Truth

Hyuuga Neji; 3 Years Later

Age 16

-The God Awful Truth-

Today I had to do one of the things I least looked forward to ever since I graduated the academy as the number one rookie.

It was almost as if they did this so that it would discourage people from becoming the number one rookie.

I had to return to the academy and speak with ninja hopefuls and their parents about becoming a ninja. Of course, I was supposed to make it "nice" in order to make the students be enthusiastic about returning. In my opinion, if the students were afraid of becoming a ninja by the sound of my talk then that's reason enough for them not to become one.

When the number one rookie came to our academy when I was six years old, he hadn't amounted to much. He was still a genin and most other students from his year had already surpassed him.

I made sure to put on my chuunin vest.

I was sitting in my room, going over in my head exactly what I was going to say, when there was a knock at my door.

Ah, here comes my uncle to put me in my place again.

"Neji," he said, opening the door before I even told him he could come in.

"What is it?" I said.

"Have you seen Hinata?" he asked.

"I'm not her baby sitter." I answered.

I know that technically, in a way, I actually sort of am, but I was sure that my uncle would do a fine job at reminding me of that fact.

"I see." He said. "Sorry to bother you."

With that, he shut the door.

I was very surprised. I got up out of my chair and opened the door to see that he was walking away. So I shut the door again. For once, he had had a talk with me without somehow turning it around to reminding me about my dead father and my horrible fate.

With a shrug, I turned around only to see Lee standing there right in front of me.

"Hi Neji!" he shouted.

I nearly had a heart attack. I hated it when he climbed in my window and he knew that. But still, he tended to do it anyway.

"Lee, what have we talked about concerning coming in my window?" I said, though I knew it was going in one ear and out the other. Ever since he had become a chuunin, he seemed to think that we were buddy-buddy again… as if we were ever buddy-buddy.

He grabbed my shoulders and shook me. "GUESS WHAT!!" he shouted.

I wrenched him from me. "I don't want to know." I replied.

"Yes you do!!" cried Lee, getting down on his knees.

This was so pathetic. "Fine." I said. "What is it?"

"Ino called me earlier today—" Who's Ino? "—and she said that she and a bunch of people are going down to a club and that she set me up with Sakura!"

"Wow, Lee." I said, trying to express the fact that I couldn't possibly care less no matter how hard I tried with my expression and my tone. "I'm so happy for you."

"Really?!" gasped Lee. "Neji, you're such a friend!!"

"And you know me so well." I said, being entirely sarcastic.

"I do!" said Lee with an enthusiastic nod.

I lowered my head and put a hand to it. Lee was no more mature than he was when I had met him four years ago. I believe he was way overdue for some growing up.

I waited for Lee to leave, but he didn't.

"Well, you've told me your news." I said finally. "Now I wouldn't mind if you left. I have places to go. And close the window on your way out."

"Where are you going?" Lee asked.

I should have just left that part out. "I have to go and speak at the academy because I was the number one rookie four years ago." I answered. "It's not like you know anything about that though."

"Wow!" said Lee. "I wish _I _was the number one rookie so _I _could speak at the academy!! Instead, I have a date with Sakura!!"

I didn't know whether he was being sarcastic or not, so I only eyed him suspiciously.

"Well, I have to go and tell Tenten!!" said Lee, running over to the window. "Then I'm going to get ready and then I'm going to go and pick up Sakura and then I'm going to go to the club!!"

"Good for you." I said, going to the window as well, ready to shut it and lock it as soon as he was out of it completely.

"Have fun speaking to the little kids!" he said, swinging one leg out the window.

"Go." I said.

"I'll tell you all about my date tomorrow!" he said, now sitting on the ledge.

"Just go." I said.

"You should come along after you're done!!" he said, jumping out but sticking his head back through.

"Please go." I said. He pulled his head out of the window and I shut it.

I didn't have the time or the energy to deal with migraines.

After double-checking to make sure I was wearing my chuunin vest, I decided to be on my way. I didn't tell a single soul I was leaving or that I was even doing this talk.

Well, except for Tenten.

I had told her.

And she immediately decided that it was her duty to come along since she was the best female ninja in the class from our year. Best female ninja in the class… that's not saying much.

So not only did I have to talk to a bunch of kids, but I had to spend the time with Tenten. It's not that I hate Tenten, she's just annoying.

I reached the academy, and Iruka was waiting outside to greet me.

"Neji, good evening!" he said. "So nice of you to come!"

"Iruka, Tenten's coming along too." I said. "Do you remember Tenten?"

"Of course I remember Tenten!" said Iruka. I could tell he couldn't remember Tenten.

"She was the best female ninja in the class from my year." I explained, and he nodded. "She's really excited about this." I added.

"Oh!" said Iruka. "But you know, you didn't HAVE to ask her to come."

"I didn't ask her." I clarified. "She volunteered."

"That was nice of her!" Iruka said. "Well, the students and their parents should be arriving at around 7:15 so why don't you go on inside and get yourself ready?"

Without saying anything else, I went inside. 7:15 was certainly an odd time to decide to start a meeting like this. But I wasn't going to dwell on the time.

I didn't have much set up. So I went up to the front of the classroom and just started organizing things on Iruka's desk. I guess I sort of did it subconsciously and got a little to absorbed in my task because I didn't even notice when someone came into the room.

"Neji!" I heard. I turned around to see Tenten standing there in a skirt.

I went back to organizing.

Tenten in a skirt??

I turned back around. Why was she wearing a skirt? She knew we were talking to ninja hopefuls today and if they saw her in a skirt then they wouldn't take her seriously.

"Why are you wearing a skirt?" I said.

She blushed. "I wanted to look nice for the presentation."

I knew what it was all about. I bet she was going to that club afterwards where everyone was hanging out and no doubt Sasuke would be there. It's no surprise to anyone to hear that Tenten also had a crush on Sasuke.

"You're supposed to reach out to female students to make them excited about being ninjas and work hard." I told her, hoping that I would teach her a lesson for a similar situation. "Not make them think that being a ninja is fun and oriented entirely around getting a boy to notice you."

She looked nervous and slightly blank. Perhaps she didn't quite understand what I was saying.

Time to spell it out.

"Too bad though." I said. "Every other girl in the world thinks Sasuke likes them too."

She sighed.

"Oh, I don't care about Sasuke." She lied. "I just wanted to look nice!" Then she cleared her throat to change the subject. "So what are you going to talk about?"

She was here at the meeting and she didn't even know what I was going to be talking about? "Being a ninja." I answered.

"Oh, okay!" she said cheerfully. "What should _I _talk about?"

There was no time for her to ramble to the students. "You're not going to talk." I said. "You don't even need to be here."

"You two almost ready?" came Iruka's voice.

"I'm all set." I replied.

"Uh…yeah…" Tenten stuttered nervously.

"Now, the students and their parents will be here any minute." Iruka said, looking at the clock. "Remember, we're PROMOTING the thought of becoming a ninja so be sure to sugar coat it. These kids are only six and seven years old and they'll learn about all the other stuff later on."

"I know." I said.

The students and their parents started to arrive. They all sat around the classroom. Tenten looked like she was in La-La Land and Iruka was signaling for me to start.

"Ten years ago," I began. "A boy who graduated at the top of his class came to speak to me, just like I am doing so to you. I graduated as the best ninja in my class for many reasons. I eagerly wanted to become a ninja, and knew it was my destiny to do so. The boy told me about this, and I believed every word about it, jumping at the chance to become the best in my year.

"But…" I continued, trailing off a bit. Iruka was nodding contently, but I knew that nodding would not last after I said this next part. "Being a ninja is not all fun and games. It's hard work. I earned this chuunin vest. Someone didn't just _give _it to me. There were many difficult aspects that I had to endure in order to become the ninja I am."

Iruka's nod slowly transformed into a shake of the head.

I felt Tenten tap me on the shoulder, but I ignored her and raised my hand.

"Don't let anybody tell you that you can be a ninja just because you're wearing the forehead protector. You must risk life and limb for your village. Why, many genin die on their first missions. You may come to lose a comrade in an exam… or you may even be the unfortunate loss of the group—"

I was interrupted because Iruka began to clap.

"All right!" he cheered. "Let's all thank our friend for taking some time out of his day to speak to us!"

The crowd hesitantly clapped. Although I was not finished, I felt as though my message had been sent to them.

"Tenten, would you like to say a few words?" Iruka asked.

I was curious to see what sort of pointless statement she was going to come up with. "Oh…um! Hi everyone! My name is Tenten and I'm a genin. By working hard, I also hope to become a chuunin someday! I have already vowed to become a great ninja, and I hope all you will too!"

That was even more disappointing than I had originally anticipated.

"Well, thanks to you all for coming today!" said Iruka.

He said a few more words and then the kids dispersed.

Tenten left to say bye to the kids at the door, but Iruka pulled me aside.

"Neji, we talked about what you would say." He said. "And you didn't mention any of that."

"I remembered it just before I got here." I said. "I felt it was important to add."

"It wasn't acceptable." He said. "I am very disappointed in you."

What was he going to do about it? I wasn't his student anymore and he didn't outrank me. So I only nodded at him and went to the door.

"What did Iruka have to say?" Tenten asked immediately.

She had no right to know or even ask that sort of question.

So I disregarded it.

"I'm going home now." I told her.

"Hey Neji!" he called.

I hardly kept myself from cringing. "What is it?" I said, turning around and stopping.

"A bunch of people went down to the club tonight for a get together!" she said.

I knew this. Now why was she bringing it up to me?

"And?" I led since she wasn't going on.

"I was wondering if maybe you wanted to go?" Tenten asked.

Then it hit me. All this time…not Sasuke.

She had been interested in _me_.

I walked right up to her. It was time to set things straight before everything got out of hand. I saw the way girls clung on to Sasuke and, while I knew it would never get that bad with Tenten, I didn't want to have to deal with her while I was focused on becoming a ninja.

"Tenten," I said, making sure she heard me. "It is natural for a sixteen-year-old girl to develop a crush on a sixteen-year-old boy. However, the thought of you and I together just is not natural."

"What…?"

I almost heard her heart break.

"Go home, Tenten." I said.

I turned away from her.

"Hey!" she yelled, sounding angry. "Neji, you can't tell me that you don't like me at all! What about all those times we trained together?!"

I sighed. "That is so like a female to take something as serious as training and turn it into flirting. Don't make me repeat myself, Tenten. I have never had any interest in you and I never will. And don't let me catch you watching me again."

I left her with that.

I had never even begun to consider that Tenten ever had any interest in pursuing me as a boyfriend. Now, the more I thought about it, the more it disgusted me. How long had she been harboring this affection towards me?

Were all those offers to train with me just so she could satisfy her girlish desires?

Female ninjas really are disappointing. I have yet to meet a single one with motives other than to impress a male.


	36. Uchiha Sasuke: My Choice

Uchiha Sasuke; 3 Years Later

Age 15

-My Choice-

I had just returned from a mission. The mission had been extremely long and annoying, but not incredibly dangerous. Only a C-rank one. Therefore, I had been sent on the mission with only one other chuunin; Ino.

"We completed our mission." Ino reported as she opened up the door to see Shikamaru sitting there. "Shikamaru?! You're not the Hokage!"

I must admit I was surprised to see Shikamaru sitting there behind the desk that had all the mission scrolls on it.

"Yeah well…" he said. "The Hokage's on vacation. I'm filling in."

"Aren't there OTHER people who are more qualified that could fill in?" I said with a raised eyebrow.

"I guess." He said, eyeing me. "You'll receive your payment tomorrow morning. You are dismissed."

I hated taking orders from Shikamaru and having to respond to comments like, "You are dismissed." He didn't even bother _pretending_ that he didn't think he was above us!

"So Sasuke…" Ino said to me after we had left the building.

"Yeah?" I said.

"What are you doing for the rest of the day?" she said.

"A shower." I answered. "I don't know. Probably just hang out."

She paused slightly. I looked at her to see her cheeks turning red. What was she going to do? Say?

"Do you want to hang out maybe… together?" she said.

My initial thought was, "Yes." I quickly shook that away. Where had that come from? Of course I didn't want to hang out with Ino since she'd think it was a date.

But was there really any problem with it being a date?

There was definitely a problem with it being a date.

"Well…" I said. "I have…stuff…" I stuttered. "To do."

Why was I thinking up excuses? I had never done so in the past. Ino nodded, looking a little embarrassed.

"Well, I'll see you around." She said, shrugging and beginning to walk off.

Then I did something I didn't even consciously know I could do. After my mouth hung open for a moment, I finally heard, "Around when?" come out of it.

Ino stopped dead in her tracks. I bit my lip at her turned back.

"Around…seven?" she said.

"Around seven." I repeated.

She turned around with the brightest smile on her face. I had never seen a girl quite so genuinely happy.

"Okay!" she said.

I raised one hand and awkwardly waved to her. She waved back and skipped off. I got the feeling that I'd be doing a lot of awkward things today. Er… tonight.

What was I thinking? I had to train to beat Itachi. I couldn't get mixed up with _girls_. Sure, that philosophy was all right when I was twelve years old… but I'm fifteen now. Is this just an inevitable part of my growing up? Was there any use trying to control it? Besides, it's not like we were going out or anything. We were just 'hanging out'.

After all! It's not like it'd be any different from the past few days that I had spent with Ino! It would just be at a restaurant or something instead of out in the forest. Fighting ninjas.

Six thirty rolled around and I was beginning to feel like maybe I should just not show up. Then again…what kind of man would I be if I didn't show up?

Besides, Ino and I worked together on missions a lot and if I just didn't show up then it would be really tense from now on and we didn't need tense air between two teammates while on a mission.

"For the sake of future missions." I decided.

Should I eat? Were we even going to eat? What if we were just going to stay at her house and…do stuff?

I put my hands down on the table and took a deep breath.

"Calm down." I told myself. "This isn't a date. We're just hanging out."

I reached the front door and suddenly thought; …should I dress up?

I ran upstairs. If I waited for very much longer then I was going to be late. I didn't have very much variety to wear, but I still went through three or four different outfits.

"This is ridiculous!!" I said suddenly, throwing a shirt to the ground.

I looked at the clock. "7:05?" I said.

Maybe if I didn't look at the clock, time wouldn't pass. I scrunched up another shirt in my hands. What was I so afraid of? No, I wasn't afraid. I was just… apprehensive. Apprehensive of what? Ino misinterpreting this as a date?

WAS it a date?

I took one last look at the clock. 7:07…

It was now or never.

Now.

Pulling the closest shirt over my head, I rushed out the door as fast as I could. I was already late, but fashionably late. Right? She probably expected me to be late anyway.

I reached her door and cleared my throat.

"Ino, you are of course aware that this is not a date." I practiced to the closed door. I cleared my throat. "Ino, this is not a date. We're just two teammates hanging out. We should discuss some strategies for our next mission."

I knocked on the door.

It swung open almost immediately.

Ino was standing there in a purple dress and her short hair was pulled back with a matching purple clip.

"Hi Sasuke!" she said.

I blinked.

"Hi." I said.

She eyed me for a moment. "Is something wrong?" she asked.

I thought. "No." I answered. "Nothing."

"Okay." She said with a shrug, shutting the door behind her. "I hope you don't mind that I invited some people along."

"Some people?" was all I could answer with.

"Yeah!" Ino said. "We're only hanging out after all. I tried setting up—"

She continued to talk, but I didn't hear much of it. I was only looking at her as she spoke.

She trailed off. "Sasuke…are you sure you're all right?" she asked.

"Uh…yeah—" I said hesitantly.

Ino shrugged again as we reached a restaurant that I had never been to before. When I got inside, there was music playing and lots of people dancing in the middle of the floor. There were tables lined up around the floor with more people sitting at them.

"What is this?" I said. "It's not a restaurant."

Ino laughed. "It's a club." She said.

I had never been to a club but she didn't need to know that. "Oh." I said. "I knew that."

"Oh look!" Ino said, waving across the club. "There's Naruto and Hinata!"

"Naruto and Hinata?" I said. Since when were THEY together? But then again, they could just be hanging out. Like me and Ino were.

She grabbed my arm and pulled me over to where Naruto and Hinata were sitting.

"Hi Sasuke." Said Hinata quietly that I could hardly hear her. I nodded at her. Then I exchanged hellos with Naruto. It had been a little while since I had last seen him.

"Hey Ino, didn't you say that Sakura was coming?" Naruto said.

"She said she might come if she felt like it." Ino said, sitting down in her chair. Oh man… wasn't I supposed to pull her chair out for her? Next time.

I sat down, not knowing exactly what came next.

"Hey guys!!" came a voice behind me. I turned around to see Lee coming over. We all greeted him but he was obviously looking for someone. "Is Sakura not here?"

"Weren't you picking her up?" Ino asked.

"She wasn't at her house so I figured she was already here." Lee answered.

So, Ino had set Sakura up with Lee and Naruto up with Hinata. It was nice consideration on her part, but I knew that Naruto liked Sakura too much to switch over to Hinata. Besides, didn't Hinata like Kiba? Maybe not.

Lee sat down at the table anyway and sighed.

"She'll show up." Naruto said, but he sounded like he was convincing himself.

"Um…hey, how about we dance?" Ino suggested. "Sasuke? Do you know how?"

"Uh—" I began. "…Yeah…"

"Okay, let's go!" said Ino, grabbing my arm and pulling me up out of my chair.

She had very slyly chosen her words just then and tricked me into dancing with her. She took my hand and guided my other hand to her waist. I had never really danced before, but it's not like it was hard.

"Sasuke, you're supposed to lead." Ino said with a laugh.

Lead? "What?" I said.

"You're letting me lead." She giggled.

"Um…okay?" I said.

"That's okay, I don't mind." She said, looking down and blushing.

It was really uncomfortable as we silently danced to the music.

"So um…" I started. "That was uh…nice of you. To set up Hinata and Naruto. And Lee and Sakura."

Ino looked past me at the table. "Yeah…" she sighed. "But I don't think Naruto likes Hinata very much. But she likes him so much! The same with Lee to Sakura and Naruto to Sakura. And Sakura to…" she paused and looked down again, dramatically lowering her voice. "…you…"

She cleared her throat and dropped her hands to her side.

"Sasuke, I'm forcing you into this." She said. "I'm so sorry."

"Forcing me into it?" I said, confused.

"It's okay," she said, waving it off. "I didn't have any right to do this sort of thing to you."

"What sort of thing?" I asked.

"Are you kidding me?" she said. "You don't want to date me. You never have and you never will."

Ino said the 'D-word'.

"I'm sorry." she repeated.

I looked at her as she began to fan her face with her hand.

"Ino, I'm sorry." I said suddenly. I didn't even mean to.

"What?" she gasped.

"I don't know." I answered truthfully.

That's when Sakura came out of nowhere. "Who do you think you are?!" she demanded of Ino. "How DARE you do such a thing! You ask Sasuke out behind my back and trick him into coming out with you and then you try to cover it up by making it a group get together thing! You KNEW I loved Sasuke!!"

Sakura looked at me.

"Sasuke, look deep into my eyes." She said.

"I'm looking." I said.

"And tell me you don't love me." She finished.

That was an odd request. But if she needed me to tell her once again that I didn't love her then I'd do it. "I don't love you." I said.

Sakura blinked, looking shocked. Was it really all that shocking?

"NOW," she continued. "Look deep into my eyes again!"

"And?" I said.

"And tell me that you love Ino."

I swallowed hard. That one was a little bit harder.

"Well?!" Sakura said after a moment's pause.

"I…" I began. I was in a lose-lose situation. If I said I loved her then Ino would think I loved her. If I said I didn't love her then Sakura would think she still had a chance.

But it's not like I loved her.

"I…" I started again.

"Sakura, don't put Sasuke in this situation!" Ino said suddenly. "You're a terrible person and you seriously need to reevaluate everything you stand for!"

"How dare you, Ino." Said Sakura. "I thought you were my FRIEND."

"Well, I thought so too." Ino said. "But not anymore."

Sakura gaped at that comment and stormed off without another word.

Ino looked at me. "I'm SO sorry, Sasuke." She said.

"It's not your fault." I said. "I know you just invited everyone else so that I wouldn't feel as awkward, and not so you could make it look like we were just hanging out instead of having—" I faltered on the word.

"A date?" Ino tried.

"Yeah, one of those." I said, clearing my throat. "But you didn't have to."

"I wanted to." Ino said.

I looked back at the table where Naruto was staring at me. Hinata and Lee were also watching, but trying not to make it so obvious.

"I'll walk you home." I said.

She nodded solemnly.

"I hope Naruto and Hinata's date goes okay." Ino said.

I nodded. I didn't care much for Naruto and I didn't know Hinata too well, so I didn't know what to think of it all. In fact, I didn't know what to think of any of things that had happened tonight. A very short night, but still… a very confusing night.

"Sasuke, I'm sorry." Ino said.

"WHY do you keep saying that?" I asked.

"Because I AM sorry!" Ino said, stomping her foot. She was wearing high-heeled shoes and, after stomping her foot, the heel collapsed and broke off, sending her flying forward into me. I caught her.

She looked embarrassed.

"I didn't mean for that to happen." She said. "And these heels were really expensive too… they were my mom's. I borrowed them from her because I didn't have anything that would match this dress…it's actually Tenten's since I don't have any dresses and—"

I don't know what possessed me to do it, but I leaned forward and kissed her.

I don't think Ino knew how to react because she didn't.

I finally pulled away from her. Ino let go of me and stood up straight. She had a smile creeping out across her face but she looked like she was trying to hide it.

"Good night." I said.

She finally let out the smile. "Good night." She said, opening the door and shutting it behind her.

I slowly walked away from the front steps.

Oh no.

What. Had. I. Done.


	37. Inuzuka Kiba: Whatever You Want

Inuzuka Kiba; 3 Years Later

Age 15

-Whatever You Want-

I knew it.

The first time I get to go on a mission by myself, I mess it up.

I hadn't gone on it all by myself though. Akamaru had been with me. But that's where all the trouble started.

We completed the mission all right, and on the way home we got careless. Neither of us bothered to keep an eye out for any traps, figuring that since the mission was over, so was the danger.

Akamaru fell into a trap.

A nearly twenty foot plunge into darkness and there was nothing I could do to save him. The opening was too small for me to fit in and Akamaru had gotten injured so he couldn't jump out. I don't know how long I stayed there, digging out the sides of the walls so I could get to him. It certainly was a long time.

When I finally reached him, he was in pretty bad shape. I had to take him back to the Hokage so she could make him all better.

So here I was, running as fast as I could while also trying to be steady.

"Don't worry, Akamaru!" I said. "You'll be fine!"

He only whined in response.

Finally, I could see the village. I ran faster than I ever had before until I reached the Hokage's office.

"Kiba, slow down." Shino said, standing up.

I turned around and looked at Shino. He had been sitting there on the steps? Why?

But now wasn't the time to think about it.

"Shino, Akamaru's hurt really bad!" I said. "Where's the Hokage?"

"She's on vacation."

"She's on a---what?—how?!" I demanded. "How can the HOKAGE just take a VACATION?! She has to heal Akamaru!!"

"Shikamaru is filling in." Shino said.

"Shikamaru isn't going to help." I said, looking a little annoyed.

"You could try asking Shizune, the Hokage's assistant." Shino tried.

"Where can I find her?" I asked.

Shino gestured his head for me to follow him. I figured he probably knew the ropes better than me because he's a chuunin and everything. We went to a part of the Hokage's building that I had never been to before.

He opened the door and there was a woman sitting behind a desk under a huge stack of papers. She poked her head up over the papers.

"May I help you?" she asked.

"Hey, can you heal Akamaru?" I asked her, going over to her desk.

I think she thought I was playing a prank or something because she looked at me with an extremely questioning look. But, after a moment, I think she realized that I was entirely serious. She stood up from her seat and put her hand on Akamaru.

I waited for a minute or so until she pulled away.

"There." She said. "Just rest him up for a day or so. No vigorous training or missions for at least a week, though!"

"Yes ma'am!" I said. "Thanks!"

I think Akamaru was already resting because he looked like he was sleeping. I turned to leave and almost bumped into Shino who had just been standing there the entire time.

We both left Shizune's office.

"You should find Hinata." Shino said.

"Why?" I asked.

"She's been worried about you." Shino replied.

For some reason, the thought of Hinata worried about me made me… happy. Was that right?

"Let's take Akamaru home." I said. "Then we'll find Hinata!"

"Okay." Said Shino with a shrug.

We went to my house and dropped Akamaru off.

My mom went CRAZY!

"Kiba, I was SO worried about you!!" she yelled, hugging me even though Shino was standing right there and she was embarrassing me. "I never should have let you go on that mission on your own!! I knew you were too young!! I should have listened to your sister!!"

"MOM!" I said, pushing her away. "I'm dirty! You don't want to hug me!"

"Of course!" she said. "But why are you so late?!"

I told her the whole story. I also told the story for the benefit of Shino too, since I figured he might want to know.

"And NOW we're going to go and find Hinata!" I said. "Cause Shino said she's been really worried!"

"She has been!" my mom said. "I think she's been over here three different times to ask me if you were home yet! Which, of course, only made me worry even MORE! Oh, Kiba, if you're going to go and see your girlfriend you should at least wash your face off."

"MOM!" I yelled. "She's not my girlfriend!!"

I looked at Shino.

"Shino, she's not my girlfriend." I said.

"Okay." Said Shino.

I went into the bathroom to wash my face off like my mom said. Even though Hinata wasn't my girlfriend, I didn't want to run around with a dirty face. As I dried it off, I noticed that I had the very thin and light tiny makings of a beard. Yay! I'm so manly!

But I decided not to tell my mom while Shino was there or else she'd embarrass me some more.

"Come on, Shino!" I said, going out the door and dragging Shino along.

"Come home soon!!" my mom called as I shut the door.

We both started walking towards Hinata's house.

"Hey Shino, I think I'm growing a beard." I said.

"Okay." Said Shino.

"Should I grow a beard?" I said, more to myself.

"I don't know." Shino replied.

He wasn't being much help.

I was kinda glad that Hinata had been worried about me for some reason. She WASN'T my girlfriend, just my friend who happens to be a girl. Besides, girls worry about their friends who are boys but not their boyfriends all the time!

"Hey Shino, was Hinata REALLY worried about me or just KINDA worried about me?"

Shino didn't answer for a moment.

"REALLY worried." He said finally.

"Oh." I said. Suddenly, it didn't make me feel as fuzzy anymore.

"There she is." Shino said, stopping dead. I looked ahead to see Hinata walking across her lawn and across the street. She didn't even notice us, but she was all dressed up nice.

"Where's she going?" I asked him.

Shino shrugged.

"Let's follow her!" I said.

I knew it wasn't right to 'spy' on people, but something compelled me to be excited about it. Shino didn't object and almost seemed to lead the way as we followed her down to a club.

"Whoa, Hinata's going clubbing?" I said, not even realizing that I was hiding behind Shino.

"I think she's meeting Naruto." Shino observed.

"WHAT?" I said, almost jumping over Shino in order to see. Sure enough, Naruto was standing in front of the club, looking like he was waiting for Hinata. The two of them spoke for a minute and then went inside the club.

Together.

"Are they going on a date?" I asked Shino.

"I don't know."

"It LOOKS like they're going on a date."

"Why do you even care? It's not like she's your girlfriend."

"I know that, Shino!" I yelled at him.

Why did EVERYONE give me such a hard time and try to convince me that Hinata was my girlfriend?! We were just two people of the opposite sex who liked to hang out with each other!

Shino looked at me.

"Okay, FINE!" I said. "Let's follow her! But only because YOU want to so badly!"

Shino didn't reply to that because he knew it was true. The two of us crept up to the club as if Hinata would jump out and surprise us at any moment and catch us sneaking up on her. Once we got inside, I caught sight of Hinata almost immediately across the club.

"DUCK!" I yelled, pushing Shino out of the way before she could see us.

"Kiba, if you yell like that, you'll get noticed." Shino warned me.

"Shh, be quiet Shino!" I hushed him. "Let's go sit over there!"

I prodded him in the direction of a table where we could go unobserved by Hinata but still be able to see her.

"Hey, Sasuke and Lee are there too!" I said, trying to see over some people who kept walking in front of me, blocking my field of view. "What's going on?! I've only been gone a few days!!"

"Ino's there." Shino said.

"Oh, okay." I said, sitting back down.

I continued to crane my neck around, lean back in my chair and sit up or stand down…whatever had to be done so I could still see her. She wasn't moving much.

Eventually, Ino, Sasuke, Naruto and Lee all left the table.

"Hey!" I said, standing up. "Hinata's sitting at the table all by herself!"

"You should go over and talk to her." Said Shino.

"No way!" I said. "She'll think I'm stalking her or something."

"You kind of are."

"Be quiet Shino!" I insisted. "I'm going to get a little closer."

I got up from the table and maneuvered my way across the dance floor so I could still see Hinata, but made very sure that she couldn't see me. I could hardly see over the crowd of people.

"Hey there, Inuzuka." Came a voice behind me. I turned around to see a girl standing there I didn't even know. But she definitely was a lot older than me. She was probably…eighteen or something.

I looked behind me to make sure she was actually talking to someone else.

"Hi." I said. "How'd you know I was an Inuzuka?"

"I just KNOW these things." She said. "So, Inuzuka, you want to dance?"

"Oh, no." I said. "You're way older than me. I'm only fifteen."

"So?" she said.

"I don't know if you'd want to touch me though." I said. "I just got back from a mission and I haven't showered yet. I guess I should have though, especially if I was going to come to a club. But I didn't really have any intentions to come, actually."

"Oh, so you're a ninja." She said. "But I don't mind the smell or the dirt. I like a rugged man."

I watched as Naruto and Lee got back to the table. I was trying to see past the older girl, but she was doing a pretty good job at getting in my way.

"Who are you looking for?" she asked, turning around.

Suddenly, I watched as Hinata stood up and made her way across the club to the bathrooms.

"Sorry!" I said. "I have to go!" I pushed past her and followed where Hinata went.

She was going towards the bathroom.

I would just have to stand out there and wait for her to get out because there was no way I was going to go in the girl's bathroom. Besides, it's not like I NEEDED to speak with her. I just wanted to tell her I was back so she wouldn't worry anymore.

However, my nose told me she had wandered off into the boy's bathroom.

So I decided to peak in there just in case.

She was standing there.

"Kiba!" she exclaimed, looking surprised. "You're back from your mission! You're all right!" She paused and looked around. "And you're in the girl's bathroom!!"

"Hinata, YOU'RE in the BOY'S bathroom." I told her, showing her the sign on the door.

She turned red. "I don't believe I did that!" She dove under my arm and sprinted out of the bathroom.

"It's all right, Hinata!" I said, realizing that she was upset. "I won't tell anyone!"

"What a coincidence that you're here too!" Hinata said, obviously trying to change the subject. "When did you get back from your mission?"

"Around six thirty." I answered.

"Are you all right?" she asked. "Any injuries?"

"No." I said. I decided not to tell her about what happened to Akamaru since she seemed upset enough. And, knowing Hinata, she'd only get MORE upset.

"Kiba, I was really stupid tonight." She said randomly.

Hinata? Stupid? No. That's MY job. "Hinata, I HIGHLY doubt that." I said, laughing because I figured she was joking.

She laughed too.

Then she got serious again. "No, I really was. But I finally realized something tonight that I should have realized a long time ago."

"Oh?" I said. "And what's that?"

She looked like she wanted to answer, but couldn't.

"Nothing." She said, shaking her head. "It's nothing."

I wasn't going to push her if she didn't want to talk about it. "Okay, Hinata. So… do you want to go home?"

"Yes." She replied. "I really do."

"I'll walk you home if you want."

"No. Thank you, though. I just need a little time to clear my head."

If she's upset, I think it would be better to be with someone. "You sure?"

"Yes, I'm positive."

"All right." I said. If that's what she wanted, then I wasn't going to argue with her or force her to walk with me. "Whatever you want, Hinata."

She started to leave.

Just before she got out the door, however, she stopped and turned around.

"Actually…" she said. "Could you…walk home with me?"

Hinata knew what was best for her. "Whatever you want, Hinata."


	38. Uzumaki Naruto: Keep on Trying

Uzumaki Naruto; 3 Years Later

Age 15

-Keep On Trying-

I remember the good old days when I would show up at the bridge to find Sasuke and Sakura already standing there.

But Sasuke was a chuunin now, so he didn't come for training.

As for Sakura… I don't know why she hardly came anymore.

I'd show up at the bridge alone and wait all by myself for Kakashi to arrive late. I wish I could say that he was getting better at arriving on time, but he really wasn't.

All that alone time forced me into thinking a lot.

I began to reevaluate my lifetime goals. Did I even really want to be Hokage anymore? I was fifteen now, and my childhood desires that I had been desperately clinging too seemed kinda silly now that I thought about it. While it would be great to be recognized as the strongest in the village, but there are all kinds of ninjas who are recognized without having to attain the title and responsibilities of Hokage.

"Good morning students!" came Kakashi's voice.

I turned around to see him standing there.

"Er…student." Kakashi corrected himself.

"Can't you make a conscious effort to arrive on time every once and a while?" I asked him, being completely reasonable.

"Sorry." Said Kakashi. "There was an old couple who needed directions…"

I slapped my forehead and waved my free had to signal to him that it was useless and he should just stop while he was ahead.

"Naruto, the Chuunin exam is coming up soon." He said. "So I need you to talk to Sakura and tell her to come to more training sessions."

"You're nominating us?" I said excitedly.

Kakashi looked at me with a stoned expression.

"Obviously." He said. "I've been nominating you ever since you were twelve. NOT nominating you now would be ludicrous."

"Oh…okay." I said slowly. He didn't have to make me feel stupid about it.

"I am going to wean you back into intensive training." Kakashi announced. "So I want ten laps around the village and meet me back here!"

As much as I didn't want to do ten laps around the village, especially ALONE, how was I supposed to argue with Kakashi? So I nodded that I understood and took of running.

Thinking has never really been my forte, but I've been getting a lot better at it lately since I've had time to do so.

With Sakura not there, she wasn't distracting me and I got a lot of one-on-one training with Kakashi.

But with Sasuke not there, I found myself not pushing myself as hard because I didn't have to prove to him that I was better since he wasn't there to cower at me.

I thought a lot about Sakura.

Her life still revolved around Sasuke. I knew she'd get out of that habit soon enough and realize that her future was with ME!

When I was finished with those laps, I returned to the bridge to wait for Kakashi.

He, of course, wasn't there.

I waited and waited and waited.

But he did not return from wherever he had gone off to.

"Okay…" I said out loud, but to myself.

I guess I got the rest of the day off!

Even though I knew, deep down inside, I had to train because the Chuunin Exam was coming up, I couldn't help but walk off. After all, I had waited at the bridge for him to come back for almost three hours so I think my leaving was completely justified.

I went back home where I would do more hanging out by myself.

I wondered where Sakura had gone. What if she was sick?

That I highly doubted.

I was hardly home for a few minutes when the phone suddenly rang. I picked it up.

"Hello?" I said.

"Naruto, is that you?" came the voice on the other line.

"Who else would it be?" I said, not immediately recognizing the person.

Seriously, though.

"Oh, okay!" she said. "Well, it's Ino! You remember me, right?"

"Yeah." I said, rolling my eyes. How could I forget Ino? She was just another one of those Sasuke-obsessed girls.

"I was just wondering if you had any interest in coming down to the club tonight at 7:00 for a little party." Ino said.

I stopped. "Ino…" I said. "Sorry. But my one and only love is Sakura."

She didn't answer for a long time.

"Naruto, I'm not asking YOU for a date." She said. "I'M going with Sasuke."

"Why would I want to go if that stupid Sasuke was there?" I said.

"Because Sakura will be there."

That was good enough for me!

"I'm there!" I said. "Bye!"

I hung up the phone.

7:00! And I would be with Sakura! How nice Ino was to set me up on a date with Sakura!

I thought about something else Ino had said. Though I cared very little about Sasuke, it still struck me as odd that he was going on a date with Ino. I wondered if this was a normal thing or if it was new. But it didn't matter to me as long as he wasn't going on a date with Sakura.

I vaulted over the couch and turned on the television.

I had fifteen minutes to kill before I had to get ready.

Fifteen more minutes and I would be with Sakura! I would ask her to dance and she'd say yes of course.

I bet it was Sakura's idea to go out with me but she was just way too sigh so she tried to act as though Ino was setting us up even though she wanted to go out with me the whole time since it was OBVIOUS!!

Before I knew it, it was time to get ready.

I had given myself a little too much time to get ready, though, because I was suddenly all set to go and it was only 6:45.

With a shrug, I decided to head down to the club anyway just so I could meet Sakura outside and stroll in with her.

I could also ask her why she wasn't at training today. But that's ONLY if we ran out of OTHER things to talk about. I mean, she obviously had very important things to do if she wasn't training.

I stood outside, giddy with myself to see her coming around the corner.

"Naruto!"

I turned around in a flash.

Sakura?

No…that wasn't Sakura…

That was some other girl who must have been interested in me.

Oh wait, it was Hinata! What's a weird girl like her doing here?

"Hi…" she said, lowering her head.

I had hardly even realized it was her. She somehow looked different. Maybe it was just because I hadn't seen her in a while but then I realized that she had on a lot of make-up. Make-up didn't bother me though, since Sakura wears make-up all the time!

"Oh, hey Hinata!" I said, still keeping an eye out for Sakura. "I almost didn't recognize you with all that make-up on!"

She started to blush.

"Hey, have you seen Sakura?" I asked her. I wanted to be sure to see Sakura before Sakura saw me.

"…N…no…" Hinata stuttered in a whispering voice. "I just…I just got here…"

"Oh well." I said. Then it occurred to me that maybe Sakura had gone inside already and she was probably waiting for me there. "Maybe she's inside." I looked at Hinata who as only standing there looking blankly at me. "You want to go inside?"

She nodded.

Even though I had wanted to go into the club with Sakura, I didn't mind that I was going in with Hinata instead. I had mainly been concerned with going in without a date. And, even though Hinata wasn't my date, I could still walk next to her so people wouldn't think I was some kind of loser without a date.

"Let's sit over there!" I said, scanning the room for a table that was in clear view of the front door. "That way, Sakura will be able to see us when she comes in!"

"Oh-okay…" Hinata stuttered.

I sat down at the table and Hinata sat down next to me. I looked around the room for Sakura, but she wasn't there.

Suddenly, I saw Ino and Sasuke coming over. Maybe Sakura was with them!

"Hey guys!" I called to them.

"Hi Naruto, hi Hinata!" Ino greeted us.

I looked behind Ino and Sasuke to see that Sakura was nowhere to be found.

"Hey Ino, didn't you say that Sakura was coming?" I asked.

"She said she might come if she felt like it." Ino said.

WHAT?! Before I could yell at Ino for tricking me into coming to a party just so everyone could make fun of me for being dateless, Lee ran over.

"Hey guys!!" he yelled. "Is Sakura not here?"

"Weren't you picking her up?" Ino asked.

What was going on? Sakura was here with ME!

Even though, technically, she wasn't here at all…

Lee gave a heavy sigh and sat down. I made sure that he didn't sit down in the empty seat next to me.

"She'll show up." I said to myself.

I crossed my arms and began to lean back in my chair, searching for Sakura.

"Um…hey, how about we dance?" Ino suggested, turning to Sasuke who hadn't said anything yet. "Sasuke? Do you know how?"

"Uh—" Sasuke began. "…Yeah…"

"Okay, let's go!" said Ino, grabbing him and pulling him out onto the dance floor.

Stupid Sasuke…

I wish Sakura was here so I could dance with her. I looked at Hinata who was looking at me. Maybe she had seen Sakura and just didn't know that I had been looking for her.

"Hinata," I said. "Do you see Sakura around ANYWHERE?"

"No…" Hinata said, sounding nervous.

"Maybe she didn't see us when she came in!" Lee said suddenly. "What if she's sitting by herself?"

He was right! We couldn't have Sakura sitting by HERSELF! She was so beautiful and angelic that someone might come along and try to take her for himself!

"Let's go look for her!" I said.

"Okay!" Lee said.

I wondered why he was so eagerly helping to find Sakura when she was my date…maybe he was over her by now.

I couldn't see over much of the crowd. I'm still kinda short, but I'm still growing.

I hopped up onto a chair and scanned around.

"Do you see her?" Lee asked me.

I could see Sasuke and Ino dancing. I could see Shino sitting at a table by himself. I could see Kiba across the dance floor talking to another girl.

Was EVERYONE at this dance except Sakura?

"No…" I answered, jumping down.

"I can't give up!" Lee declared.

The two of us searched some more but we were largely unsuccessful.

"How disappointing!" Lee said.

"Let's try standing by the door just in case she comes." I said. I had been hoping that maybe she took a wrong turn on the way to the club and maybe was just going to show up late.

"Okay!" Lee answered.

We both stood in the doorway. I didn't want people to think we were together so I made sure to stay away from him.

"Sakura!!" Lee exclaimed suddenly. "This is like a dream!!"

I turned around just in time for Sakura to push right by me and run out the door.

Time to chase after her!

I was halted, however, because Lee had grabbed my shirt collar and pulled me back.

"What's the big idea?!" I demanded.

"She needs some time to think!" Lee said.

"She needs ME to comfort her!" I tried to explain.

"Trust me, Naruto." Lee said. "That's the way girls work. Let's head back to the table."

As if Lee knew ANYTHING about girls.

I looked longingly in the direction of where Sakura had run to, but I could do nothing more but head back to the table and hope that she was running out just because she really had to go to the bathroom.

"I have NO reason to be here if Sakura isn't." I said, sitting down at the table next to Hinata. "None whatsoever. It's pointless. All I'm doing is sitting here."

"Well, at least Ino and Sasuke are having a good time." Said Lee.

"That's not fair." I said. Why does Sasuke always get to have the fun? "I wish Sakura were here."

"Um…Naruto." Hinata said suddenly. "Please excuse me. I have to use the bathroom. I'm not feeling well."

Oh, that was too bad. I hate it when girls get sick.

"Oh, I'm sorry Hinata." I said.

"Feel better soon!" Lee called after her.

I sighed and was very tempted to slam my head down on the table. I wished Sakura were here.

"Hey Lee, do you think I'll ever get a date?" I asked.

Lee paused and sighed.

"Oh, I don't doubt it, Naruto." he replied.

I thought about his response. What did he mean? Did he believe that Sakura and I had a chance? Was I even believing it anymore? Was I chasing Sakura just for the principal of the thing?

No, I should hope not.


	39. Tenten: Not Natural

Tenten; 3 Years Later

Age 16

-Not Natural-

I had been waiting for this day for a week!

It's a custom for the Number one rookies to return to the academy upon turning sixteen to talk to the students about becoming a ninja and what it is like. Now, while that number one rookie position is most certainly not mine, Neji asked me to come along to represent the female ninjas since I was the best female ninja in the class.

Well…okay… maybe he didn't ask ME…I suggested it…

But there was no harm in convincing myself that he had asked me.

Most people would question me on my reasoning, but recently I've developed a crush on Neji and only want to be around him…I feel like his condescending tone could be interpreted as critical encouragement and that he actually has feelings for me too!

I think I've felt this way about him for a long time but I haven't realized it. A few weeks ago, it suddenly occurred that my life revolved around seeing him every once and a while, even if it was across a crowd or only for a minute.

No one else has really seen Neji like I have. He and I used to train together all the time while Gai was giving special training to Lee.

Now, I don't know for sure yet, but I'm pretty sure he has feelings for me.

I would try to find out today!

I wanted to wear something sensible, but also something to get me noticed. I didn't want my outfit to scream, "TAKE ME NOW NEJI!!!" But I didn't want to send a message that I had no interest in him. What if he was truly a shy kid and didn't know how to go about asking me out?

I went back and forth from wearing the skirt to wearing the pants and finally settled on the pants.

I was about to start on my hair when I heard a knock at the door.

I opened it up to see Ino standing there looking frantic. I didn't know whether she was frantic-excited or frantic-upset.

"Tenten!" she exclaimed with a gasp.

She sounded frantic-upset. "What is it?" I said, trying to calm her down.

She took a deep breath and then let it out all at once. "I'm going out with Sasuke tonight!" she said.

"No way!!" I shouted as we grabbed hands and stood there screaming on my front doorstep. I couldn't believe she had finally done it. I wanted all the details so I dragged her inside and demanded to hear the whole story.

"And then he said—around when?" Ino said, putting a hand over her heart and sighing.

"You know what?" I said. "I had a feeling you'd end up with him."

"Really?" said Ino, looking ecstatic.

"Yeah!" she said. "You guys have been friends ever since before anyone had any interest in him whatsoever."

She nodded and gave another sigh. Then she threw her hand over her mouth. "Tenten, I have nothing to wear."

I waved it off—a problem EASILY fixed. "I know what you can wear." I assured her. I remembered back years ago, Ino used to wear purple all the time. So I figured purple would be the best choice, especially since I had the perfect purple dress in my closet.

"I'm so nervous!" Ino said as I searched. "And I bet Sasuke is too! He's going to be really awkward about going on a date with me!"

"Maybe you should invite some other people to come along?" I suggested.

"What do you mean?" Ino questioned.

"Like…instead of it being just a date between the two of you, it'll be a big group in order to wean Sasuke into the idea of going out with you." I explained. "Eventually, you two will get away from the group and go out ALONE." I read that in a magazine.

It was so funny to think of Ino as nervous since she's wanted to go out with Sasuke ever since I met her and before that. I pulled the dress out of my closet and showed it to her.

"That's a great idea!" Ino said, taking the dress. "And a great dress. Though, I'm going to hate myself forever."

"Why?" I asked.

"If I invite anyone else along, I mean." Ino replied.

I thought for a moment. Who should she invite…? "You should call Hinata." I said finally, remembering I had gotten Hinata to spill who she liked only a few weeks before. "She's liked Naruto for ages. Maybe you can set them up too."

"Aren't you coming?" Ino asked.

Oh, tonight would have been a perfect night! I could have gone up to Neji and said slyly, "A bunch of people are going out tonight…let's go too!" But he had to go to the academy and I was going with him. Oh well, there would be other nights.

"No." I said. "Neji's going to talk at the academy to ninja hopefuls and he asked me to come along."

She saw right through my fib. "He asked YOU?"

"Okay, okay…" I said, figuring it was pointless to try and lie to her. "I volunteered to come along to reach out to the female portions of the class…"

"Uh huh…" Ino said.

She was going to start prodding me for more details, so I decided to deter her from the subject. "Hey, it's almost six! You better get home and get ready!"

"Oh right!" Ino said, immediately distracted. "Thanks for the dress, Tenten! I'll give it back to you after my date with Sasuke!"

She ran to the door, flung it open and ran all the way home.

I felt like laughing at her slightly, but what she was doing was hardly different from what I was doing.

I changed back into the skirt.

When the time came, I made my way over to the academy. I had asked Neji if he wanted to pick me up so we could walk together… but he said no… he must be shy…

So I was just to meet him there.

"Tenten!" I heard Iruka. "You look nice today!"

"Thank you!" I said with a joking curtsy.

"How's it feel to be back at the academy?" he asked.

"I can't say I ever wanted to come back!" I laughed at him.

"That's odd." Iruka said. "Neji said that you were excited."

I cleared my throat. "Well…when he asked me to come…"

"He asked you?" Iruka interrupted, looking confused. "He said that you volunteered."

"Is he already here?" I said, trying to change the subject.

"Yes, he's right inside." Iruka said.

I walked past Iruka and inside the academy. That was certainly embarrassing and didn't go well at all. I knew it wasn't Neji's intention to embarrass me, it was just my fault for…er… stretching the truth!

"Neji!" I said, going over to where Neji was setting up in front of the classroom.

He looked vaguely in my direction, then back to his work. Then he quickly looked back at me.

Was that a double take I just saw? He noticed I looked nice?

"Why are you wearing a skirt?" he said.

My face got red. "I wanted to look nice for the presentation." I said.

He shook his head slightly and went back to what he was doing.

I should have stayed with the pants! Note to self; Skirts do NOT impress Neji!

"You're supposed to reach out to female students to make them excited about being ninjas and work hard." He said. "Not make them think that being a ninja is fun and oriented entirely around getting a boy to notice you."

I bit my lip. So he knew I liked him.

"Too bad though." He continued. "Every other girl in the world thinks Sasuke likes them too."

I gave a sigh of relief. He DIDN'T know I liked him.

"Oh, I don't care about Sasuke." I said. "I just wanted to look nice!" I cleared my throat and got a little closer to him. "So what are you going to talk about?"

He looked at me out of the corner of his eye. "Being a ninja." He said.

There's that critical encouragement again.

"Oh, okay!" I said. "What should _I _talk about?"

He gave a heavy sigh. "You're not going to talk." He said. "You don't even need to be here."

That was not a response I had expected.

Before I could say anything, Iruka came in. "You two almost ready?" he asked.

"I'm all set." Neji said.

"Uh…yeah…" I said.

"Now, the students and their parents will be here any minute." Iruka said, looking at the clock. "Remember, we're PROMOTING the thought of becoming a ninja so be sure to sugar coat it. These kids are only six and seven years old and they'll learn about all the other stuff later on."

"I know." Neji said.

I could remember back ten years ago when a sixteen-year-old came into our academy class and told us about what it was like to be a ninja. He made it seem so pleasant and fulfilling but, above all, so EASY! He acted like it would be no problem to just walk into the chuunin selection exams and become a chuunin right off the bat. Well, I have yet to make it to the tournament portion of the exam and I've been going at it every year.

As the students and their parents filed in, I glanced at the clock to see that it was almost 7:15. I wondered how Ino's date was going. I hoped she had hit it off with Sasuke.

Then it occurred to me. Once Sakura found out, she was going to be FURIOUS. Ino probably made the mistake of calling Sakura up and asking if she wanted to 'hang out' with _Lee_. I didn't care much for Sakura though. Ever since the selection exam last year, I don't talk to her much.

"—Ten years ago—" I heard Neji begin, going off into his shpeal about how he remembered when someone came to talk to our class. I stood back behind him, smiling at the kids in the class, looking nice. I don't think they were old enough to look at me and think I didn't take being a ninja seriously just because I was wearing a skirt.

I zoned back into Neji's talk. "—But…" he said. "Being a ninja is not all fun and games. It's hard work. I earned this chuunin vest. Someone didn't just _give _it to me. There were many difficult aspects that I had to endure in order to become the ninja I am."

I caught Iruka shaking his head in the back of the class.

I tapped Neji on the shoulder, but he put his hand up to tell me to stop. "Don't let anybody tell you that you can be a ninja just because you're wearing the forehead protector. You must risk life and limb for your village. Why, many genin die on their first missions. You may come to lose a comrade in an exam… or you may even be the unfortunate loss of the group—"

Iruka suddenly began to clap his hands and move towards the front.

"All right!" he cheered. "Let's all thank our friend for taking some time out of his day to speak to us!"

The kids clapped. I don't think they knew any better. The parents looked a little angry, though, but they still clapped.

"Tenten, would you like to say a few words?" Iruka asked.

"Oh…um!" I said, looking around quickly. "Hi everyone! My name is Tenten and I'm a genin. By working hard, I also hope to become a chuunin someday! I have already vowed to become a great ninja, and I hope all you will too!"

"Well, thanks to you all for coming today!" said Iruka.

He said a few more words and then the kids dispersed.

I went outside to say bye to a few of the kids as Neji and Iruka stayed in. I got the feeling that Iruka was scolding Neji for going off a bit and not keeping everything low-key.

After a few minutes, he came outside looking undeterred.

"What did Iruka have to say?" I asked.

But he didn't reply.

"I'm going home now." He said as he began to walk away.

I looked at my watch to see that it was only 7:45. I wondered if maybe Ino and the rest of the people she invited were still at the club.

"Hey Neji!" I called after him.

He turned around to face me. "What is it?" he said in his critical encouragement tone.

"A bunch of people went down to the club tonight for a get together!" I said.

He didn't reply.

"And?" he said finally.

"I was wondering if maybe you wanted to go?" I said, trying to be assertive but not forceful.

He looked down at the ground. Then, slowly, he approached me.

My heart was beating so fast. He was so close I could touch him. Then he was even closer so that I felt intimidated.

"Tenten," he said. The tone of his voice surprised me. "It is natural for a sixteen-year-old girl to develop a crush on a sixteen-year-old boy. However, the thought of you and I together just is not natural."

I sank.

"What…?" I said. I had been hoping he wasn't going to say something like that. But what was I expecting? Him to kiss me? He had certainly got close enough to do so.

"Go home, Tenten." He said.

Then he turned away and began to walk.

"Hey!" I yelled. "Neji, you can't tell me that you don't like me at all! What about all those times we trained together?!"

He let out an exasperated sigh. "That is so like a female to take something as serious as training and turn it into flirting." He said. "Don't make me repeat myself, Tenten. I have never had any interest in you and I never will. And don't let me catch you watching me again."

Then he was gone.

I fell to my knees.

I felt so stupid and so embarrassed.

But was I going to let Neji get the best of me?

No…if I gave up now then he would have won. And Neji definitely can't win all our battles.

Now I knew how people like Sakura kept running towards her goal of getting the one guy who didn't want her to want her. Because Neji was now out of my reach, I would only try harder to make him mine. Deep down, I knew he wanted me too. I'd just have to bring that out of him.


	40. One Year Later

Intro; 4 Years later

Everyone is pretty sure that he or she is the center of the universe. They all see the same event in a different way. How is everyone growing up? What will their reactions to the new events in the village be?

The day is set aside for promotions and Ino, Sasuke, Lee, Shino and Neji are eagerly waiting to find if they have been promoted to the jounin level. Chouji fears his near future and requires guidance from his best friend who can hardly make time to sleep, let alone help Chouji out with problems. Tenten makes a terrible realization about the man she loves, while Sakura seems to only make everything worse for herself and everyone else. Naruto is entirely hopeless as usual, while Kiba and Hinata are having troubles of their own.

The four teams of ninjas that we have come to know and love can't stay fifteen forever. Eventually, everyone grows up.

Will Lee find a steady girlfriend?

Will Ino regret loving one man?

Will Shino realize his friendships?

Will Sakura give up on being a ninja?

Will Shikamaru have the right answers?

Will Sasuke stay a one-woman man?

Will Neji become a jounin?

Will Kiba be able to save Hinata?

Will Chouji reconsider?

Will Naruto pick up on his training?

Will Tenten be able to find a decent man?

Will Hinata find her knight in shining armor?

All these questions, and many more, will be answered. One year at a time.


	41. Rock Lee: Onna Garufurendo

Rock Lee; 4 Years Later

Age 17

-Onna Garufurendo-

I was in the Hokage's office, waiting for her to arrive. I tried to look around the room to find someone I knew… but there wasn't much of that. I was a new chuunin after all, so I didn't recognize many faces.

Even though I was a new chuunin as I previously stated, I still entered my name in the nomination…thing. If I entered my name then the Hokage would look at my fighting skills and decide whether or not to nominate me for the jounin exam. I didn't expect much, but it would have been nice.

In addition to having the nominations for the jounins today, the chuunins were also receiving their vests! It didn't normally happen on the same days but the Hokage was a little behind on handing out the vests. Both Sakura and Tenten had entered the chuunin exam and I wished them the best for obtaining their promotions.

That's probably what was keeping the Hokage. She was probably handing out vests. Probably.

Just as I thought that, I heard the door open and everyone turned around to watch as the Hokage and Shikamaru came in.

The Hokage sat down and gestured for Shikamaru to read of the announcement. I feel kind of bad for him sometimes, but on the other hand, I'm also incredibly jealous of him that he gets to work so close to the Hokage.

He cleared his throat and the crowd instantly quieted down. I think everyone respected Shikamaru almost to the extent to which they respected the Hokage. He always filled in for her whenever she was away.

"The following jounins have been selected to have a try at joining the ranks of special jounin or ANBU." Shikamaru read as he began to ramble off a long string of names.

When he was finished, he paused for a moment and then looked further down the list.

"The following chuunins have been selected to have a try at joining the ranks of the jounin." He continued. This was the list I wanted to hear! I listened carefully for my name.

"—Hyuuga Neji—"

Wow! Neji was nominated! I'm so happy for him! I didn't see him, though.

I quickly glanced around the room but I couldn't find him anywhere. Then I looked back at Shikamaru only to realize that he had finished calling the names! What if he had called my name and I didn't hear it?!

"Thank you." He said. "If you have not been chosen to compete in the upcoming exams, then don't be discouraged because you have plenty of chances to succeed. And, just because you have been nominated, doesn't mean that you are a new rank."

"You are all dismissed!" said the Hokage with a wave of her hand.

As all the ninjas made their way to the doors, I pushed my way forward to where Shikamaru and the Hokage were currently conversing.

"Good morning Miss Hokage and Shikamaru!" I said, saluting them.

"At ease." Said the Hokage, but I think she might have been taunting me. Oh well.

"Um…I'm going to look stupid…but I missed the end of the list…" I said. "Am I nominated?"

Shikamaru held up the paper and looked it over once. Twice.

"No, sorry." He said. "If you have not been chosen to compete in the upcoming exams, then don't be discouraged because you have plenty of chances to succeed. And, just because you have been nominated, doesn't mean that you are a new rank."

"Oh." I said. Those words certainly just rolled off his tongue. Again.

He looked at me like he wanted me to leave.

"Okay…thanks though!" I said.

I admit, I was a little disappointed that I wasn't nominated for the exam. I don't think I was particularly ready for it, I must admit, but I still thought it would be fun to enter anyway.

I skipped steps as I hopped down the stairs. Why was I so happy?

I would simply have to find Neji and congratulate him!

And Tenten…to find out if she passed the Chuunin Exam.

How convenient that they were both standing outside the Hokage's office.

"HEY YOU TWO!!!" I yelled. They both spun around. Neji looked annoyed and Tenten looked hurt. Not LITERALLY, just emotionally.

"Oh, hi Lee!" said Tenten, putting on a smile. Neji didn't say anything or try to put on a smile. He just continued to look annoyed.

I was going to congratulate Neji and question as to whether or not Tenten passed just as I earlier planned when I was suddenly distracted by Tenten's chuunin vest.

"TENTEN!!" I exclaimed. "You have your vest! CONGRATULATIONS!!!"

"Yeah!" she said, looking actually happy as she clung onto the collar of her own vest and gave it a tug. "I'm the only one who passed this time around!"

That meant that Sakura hadn't passed. I was going to bring that up, but I figured they didn't want to talk about that.

"Now we're ALL chuunins!" I said. "YAY!!"

"I won't be a chuunin for long." Neji said.

"That's right!" I said. "Congratulations on being nominated!"

I was the only one who hadn't had something exciting happen to me.

"Hey Lee, don't you want to know how Sakura did?" Tenten asked.

I was so confused. There were about five conversations and things I wanted to say running by me faster than I could understand or interoperate. "Yeah!" I finally managed to spout out.

"Well, when she found out she wasn't promoted, she quit."

I must not have heard correctly.

"She what?" I said.

"Good." Said Neji. "One less to have to worry about. I have to leave now."

And with that, Neji walked away.

But I didn't care that Neji was unusually rude today because I was in shock.

"But…WHY?" I said. "She was an excellent ninja!"

"Lee…open your eyes." Tenten said, putting her hands on my shoulders. "She is not what she seems. She's only toying with you because she knows that she can. She never ever EVER has ANY intentions of EVER taking you seriously."

"I'll win her eventually!" I said, determined.

"Lee, you should give up now and find a girl who loves you back." She said. "You're seventeen now. I'm sorry if this seems harsh, but you have to grow up."

That was harsh. And not just a little harsh. That was REALLY harsh.

"What about you, Tenten?" I said. "How long are you going to chase Neji for?"

"THAT is different." Tenten said, dropping her hands from my shoulders.

"You're seventeen too, Tenten." I reminded her. "You can't chase your girlish dreams forever. But you shouldn't worry…I know you'll find someone who appreciates you."

She put a hand to her mouth to keep herself from letting out a betrayed gasp. I bet she was sorry for ever telling me that she liked Neji.

I think it was time for me to go.

There was nothing more for me to say so I quickly departed. What if I had lost Tenten's friendship because of what I had just said? I shouldn't have said it. I think I had to apologize.

"Tenten, I—" I began, as I spun around but I crashed into someone and knocked her to the ground.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, dropping a stack of paper everywhere.

Why do people always carry paper all over the place?

"I'm sorry!" I said, immediately getting down on my knees and collecting up the papers. I did it very quickly because of my instinctive ninja training and handed her the papers before she had even collected herself.

"Wow, you're pretty fast." She said, pushing some hair out of her eyes.

I was suddenly mesmerized by her eyes. "And you're pretty pretty." I found myself saying.

She blushed and looked down. "Thank you!" she said.

"So, where were you headed?" I asked, standing up. I took her hand and pulled her to her feet. Oh, she was the perfect height!

"Just home…" she answered, looking at the ground. "Hey, are you six foot three?"

"My height?" I said. I was a little surprised because I had just been thinking the exact same thing. Well, to an extent. "Why, yes, I am! Not a centimeter taller and not a centimeter shorter!"

She took her papers from me. "I always pictured my perfect guy to be six foot three…" she said shyly.

"…What's your name?" I asked.

"Garufurendo." She replied quickly, but then she quieted down. "Onna Garufurendo. But everyone calls me Garu."

"Oh…" I said.

She didn't have a beautiful name like Sakura…but her face was much more pure. Garu seemed like a real person while Sakura always appeared to be hiding behind a mask.

"I'm Lee." I said. "Rock Lee."

"I know…" she said.

Surprise, surprise. This Onna Garufurendo is just full of surprises.

"You do?" I asked.

"I watched you in the Chuunin Exam last year." She said. "You were amazing."

"Thank you!" I said. "Are you a fan of ninjas?"

"I am a ninja." She said with a grin. "I'm a jounin."

"Oh." I said. "You must be very strong."

"Not as strong as you, I bet." She said, twiddling her fingers.

This girl was beautiful, she liked me and she was a spectacular ninja.

Most importantly of all, she was real!

I wasn't dreaming!

Or was I?

"Garu…" I said.

"Yes?" she asked.

"Will you pinch me?" I requested.

"Why?"

"Because I have to make sure I'm not dreaming." I answered.

"Lee, you're not dreaming." She blushed.

Wow. This was incredible. Could Tenten tell the future? Did she know that I would meet Onna Garufurendo on this very day? At this very moment? I only hope that Tenten finds someone…

Tenten!

"Oh no!" I said.

"What?" Garu asked.

"I have to apologize to Tenten!" I told her.

"Who's Tenten?" Garu said.

"The girl on my team!" I replied. "I said some pretty mean things to her as an unjustified retort for something I believed was cruel and mean at the time but now I realize that it was incredible kind…!" I trailed off and looked at Garu who was waiting eagerly for me to continue. "…And also…incredibly accurate…"

"I could help you look for her." Garu said quietly.

"Really?" I said. "You're not too busy?"

"Oh no." she said. "I'm not doing much."

"Here, I'll carry those for you!" I said, holding out my arms for her to put the papers in. I had only just realized that it was so rude for me to have not offered much earlier.

"Lee…you're so kind." She said, handing the papers to me. "I bet someone has already stolen you."

Stolen me?

"What do you mean?"

"I just know there's a girl out there who's already calling you her own!"

I immediately thought of Sakura. The last thing Sakura considered me as was 'her own'.

"No, Garu, a lot of girls out there only care about looks." I said, facing the horrible truth that I am no stud like Uchiha Sasuke and therefore, no girls came to call.

"Lee, I'm not like a lot of girls." She said. "And I hope to see you again sometime. Like say…7:00? For dinner?"

I paused. "Is this a date?" I said.

"Oh yes." She said with a nod. "It's a date all right."


	42. Yamanaka Ino: My Shy Boyfriend

Yamanaka Ino; 4 Years Later

Age 16

-My Shy Boyfriend-

I sat in a waiting room waiting for the arrival of the Hokage. I had put my name in to be nominated for the jounin exam and now I was only waiting to see if I qualified.

Sasuke sat next to me.

No doubt he had put his name in too and was waiting for the same thing. But he refused to tell me if he had or not.

I knew that he had, I just wanted to hear him say it.

"Come on, Sasuke…" I pushed him playfully. "Tell me…did you ask to enter the Jounin exam?"

He shook his head at me and acted as though there was no more say in the matter. I decided not to push it any further because that's when the door opened. The Hokage was finally going to tell us her choices!

I crossed my fingers just as the Hokage walked out.

However, the Hokage didn't walk out alone.

She was followed by the person who was about as FAR from being the Hokage as possible.

And that was Shikamaru.

The Hokage sat down in a chair and gestured to Shikamaru as he opened up a folded piece of paper.

"The following jounins have been selected to have a try at joining the ranks of special jounin or ANBU." Doesn't apply to me. Doesn't matter. I just wanted to hear the important parts. The parts about people I know.

"…Nara Shikamaru…"

Did Shikamaru put his own name in there? I bet he did.

That's the only explanation to why he was ranked so highly. All of his connections.

Then came the important part!

"The following chuunins have been selected to have a try at joining the ranks of the jounin." He read off some names I didn't know, and then got to some names I did know. "Hyuuga Neji. Aburame Shino."

At least they were people I knew…

I waited and just when I thought Shikamaru was going to read my name and then give me a big thumbs up, he folded the paper up. He didn't even read SASUKE'S name!

"Thank you. If you have not been chosen to compete in the upcoming exams, then don't be discouraged because you have plenty of chances to succeed. And, just because you have been nominated, doesn't mean that you are a new rank."

I hung my head low. I was disappointed. But I guess it wasn't the end of the world.

"You are all dismissed!" the Hokage said casually.

I looked up at Sasuke who was definitely angry. His fists were clenched and he looked as though he were trying not to scream.

Not that he would anyway.

I decided to try and cheer him up.

"Oh, too bad!" I said with a slight laugh. "I put my name in. Oh well!"

Maybe I just won't bring up the fact that I know he put his own name in as well.

We walked outside pretty silently. I didn't really know what to say. The air was really thick.

"How about that Shikamaru?" I said, trying to break the ice. "Pretty cheesy of him to read his own name, don't you think?"

"I don't think he knew it would be there." Sasuke said thoughtfully.

"Maybe." I said. I didn't really care. Shikamaru can do what he wants. I reached my hand out and grabbed his. "So, what should we do for the rest of the day? Train? Go dancing? Both?"

Sasuke looked overwhelmed for a minute.

Maybe I suggested too many things.

It doesn't really matter though. I suggested training and that's what he'd pick.

I don't really feel like training though.

"I don't know…I'd kinda like to train…" he said predictably.

"You ALWAYS want to train!" I told him. "Let's do something else for once."

"I'm not in the mood to go dancing." Sasuke said. As if he ever is. But I felt like bringing it up anyway. In the off chance that he'd say yes.

"Oh, okay." I said looking up in the air to think. Gets my brain flowing. If… brains…flowed that is.

Suddenly, I heard Chouji running and panting so I turned around and faced him.

"Chouji!" I greeted him. I hadn't seen him for a while. "What's up? Where are you running off to?"

"Oh, hey Ino!" he said to me. "Did you get nominated?"

Blah…

"No, not this time." I said with a shrug. Then I thought of the person Chouji probably cared more about. "But guess who did?"

"Shikamaru?" Chouji asked like an excited puppy.

"Yeah!" I told him with a smile. "Sasuke doesn't think he knew it was coming."

I gave Sasuke another little push and grabbed his arm in a loose hug.

"That's funny!" said Chouji. "I was just on my way to see him! I'll make sure to congratulate him!"

"Try not to embarrass him!" I yelled after him. Knowing Shikamaru, he'd be embarrassed anyway.

I began thinking about some more things Sasuke and I could do. What have we done in the past?

Dancing? Training?

No. We've done all that too recently.

What haven't we done for a while?

I suddenly thought back to the days of the academy. Not recent days in the academy but EARLY days in the academy. When me and Sasuke were pretty good friends. We played together all the time. He even drew me a picture of us together which I found a little while ago.

The picture that made me fall in love with him.

Had I really kept it all this time?

I bet he forgot about that picture.

"Hm…" I said out loud to get his attention. "I just thought of what we can do."

"What?" he asked, completely unsuspecting.

"Follow me!" I said, pulling him toward my house. We weren't that far away so it's not like I had to pull him far.

My father was pretty strict about me dating until I was at least eighteen so I had to keep my relationship with Sasuke a secret until then. I hadn't told Sasuke about that yet…I'd tell him when the time was right. Maybe when I was eighteen.

We had to sneak in my bedroom.

"This way!" I said, jumping up into a tree with ninja-like skill. I then jumped into my bedroom window, beckoning for Sasuke to follow.

Of course, it's not like he was graceful about it.

"Shh!" I told him.

He only looked at me innocently. He's so handsome when he acts all innocent. Actually, he's handsome all the time.

But…what was I doing again?

Oh right, the picture.

"Sasuke, I've been wanting to show you this ever since I first fell in love with you after the disaster happened to your clan." I said as I sat on my bed.

Sasuke didn't answer at first. Then he put a hand on his head and felt around for a chair.

"I have to sit down…" he said. His face looked a little pale. Maybe I brought back bad memories!

"Sasuke, are you all right?" I asked him, getting up and going over to make sure he was all right. "I'm sorry I brought up your family. But you really have to see this!"

"I can't…" he said. I did bring up bad memories. But this would cheer him up.

I reached under my bed and pulled the picture out.

I held it up for him to see.

"Look, Sasuke."

He kept his face turned away.

"Sasuke…look."

He opened his eyes and looked at the picture. It was crudely drawn but only because he was young.

He took the picture from me and examined it closely.

"You drew that our first day of school." I told him, giving him the history of it all. "And you gave it to me."

"Is this supposed to be me?" he asked me. As if the Uchiha fan didn't give it away. I nodded with a smile.

He continued looking at it carefully.

"A picture of us." He concluded finally. He looked at me a little skeptically. "You kept it all this time?"

I felt a little embarrassed. But it was too special for me to throw it away. There were so many things about it.

"Yeah…" I said. "It's been a secret. I've always had it. I look at it all the time. I always wondered why you didn't put my last name there either. I know it's because my name is long and hard to spell for someone your age… but I also like to think that you mentally gave me the name 'Uchiha' even at that age."

I hadn't started thinking about that last part until recently. But maybe it's foreshadowing.

"Ino…really." He said slowly. "That's highly unlikely."

"I know." I said as I sat down next to him. This'll mean more later. Maybe I showed it to him too early. "But I can dream, can't I?"

"I guess." He said.

Such a guy.

Suddenly, I heard footsteps!

My father!

"Quick!" I said to Sasuke. "Hide!"

"Hide?" he asked me.

Too slow! I quickly shoved him underneath my bed.

I leapt on top of my bed and tried to act as though I had been there all that time. I hoped Sasuke wouldn't make any noise.

My father opened the door and looked around suspiciously as if I was up to no good. Even though I was.

"Ino, I didn't see you come in." said my father.

"Oh really?" I lied, scratching my head. "I did."

"Well obviously." He said. "Your mother's making dinner. What do you want to have?"

It doesn't matter. Leave.

"Anything's fine." I said. "I'm not that hungry."

"All right then." Said my dad as he left. Fathers always come in at the worst time.

I looked under my bed to see Sasuke covering his mouth after a sneeze.

"Hey!" I greeted him.

"What was that all about?" he asked me. I felt kind of guilty that I never told him.

"I haven't told my parents about you yet." I told him.

I waited for him to crawl out but apparently, he needed to be reminded.

"You going to sit under there all day?" I asked him jokingly.

"Guess not." He said, getting out from under my bed. I kneeled on my bed and he stood next to me.

"I have to go downstairs now." I told him as I grabbed both of his hands.

"I gathered." He said. He never talks much. I played with his hands a bit.

"Sasuke, you're so shy." I admitted to him.

"I've never…been called that before." He told me. Liar. He then started blushing. He was so cute.

"See? You're blushing." I couldn't help it anymore. I gave him a much-deserved kiss for the face he was making. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"I'll be there." He told me.

He makes me so happy.

He went over to my windowsill and jumped to the ground. I waved to him out my window but I don't think he was looking. Just as I turned to go have dinner, I noticed the picture still sitting on my bed.

Maybe I need to get that framed…


	43. Aburame Shino: Concern

Aburame Shino; 4 Years Later

Age 16

-Concern-

I was a little behind schedule, which was out of the ordinary for me. I had to move quickly to make it to the Hokage's announcement of those nominated for the upcoming Jounin exam.

If I hadn't entered my name to be nominated then I doubt I would have strove so hard to make it there on time. But as it was, I was already late. And I HAD entered my name. This certainly didn't look good to the Hokage who always required that everyone be on time even if she wasn't.

And she wasn't.

I arrived late, but still before her. So I stood in the back of the room and pretended to have been there the entire time.

I knew no one would say anything because I'm an Aburame, and there's a certain fear and respect towards Aburames.

I had entered myself last year, but I suppose the fear and respect of the Aburames aren't as powerful when it came to the Hokage. I suppose that might be a good thing in a way.

When I had settled myself in the back, looking as though I had arrived ages ago, the door opened and the Hokage entered the room followed closely by Shikamaru. I couldn't remember if he was a jounin or a special jounin, but I wouldn't be surprised if he was Hokage within a few years at the rate he was being promoted. Soon, they'd run out of promotions and just have to carve his head up on the mountain.

"The following jounins have been selected to have a try at joining the ranks of special jounin or ANBU." He said as he began to read off some names. None of the names were very recognizable since I didn't make a point of palling around with anyone or having or attending pow-wow shindigs.

He hesitated.

"…Nara Shikamaru…"

Another promotion.

Why am I not surprised?

After another moment's pause, he went on.

"The following chuunins have been selected to have a try at joining the ranks of the jounin." He said and then read some more names that I didn't know. Then he slowly waned into names that I had heard before, particularly, "—Hyuuga Neji—", someone I frequently went on missions with because of our similar skill level and age.

Then, of course, the most familiar of all, "—Aburame Shino—"

That felt like a weight off my chest. I had hoped that I would be nominated and had a feeling that I would be, but there was always that nagging voice in the back of my head that tried to convince me otherwise.

"Thank you." He said once he had finished reading the names. "If you have not been chosen to compete in the upcoming exams, then don't be discouraged because you have plenty of chances to succeed. And, just because you have been nominated, doesn't mean that you are a new rank."

"You are all dismissed!" said the Hokage with a wave of her hand.

The Hokage certainly was useless. Shikamaru always did all the work. Maybe they SHOULD just make him Hokage.

Looks like I'd just be training for the next few days until the jounin exam.

Then it sank in. I was going to be taking the jounin exam in just a few days.

The jounin exam wasn't going to just be a walk in the park like the chuunin exam was. I'd have to work hard. But there was one better aspect about it that I preferred over the chuunin exam;

It was an individual thing.

Meaning; I did it alone. Without Kiba and Hinata.

"Shino, it's about time you're home."

I walked in the door and my dad was standing there. Normally he didn't come right to the door and impose himself on me like that.

I stepped back away from him to honor both of our preference for personal space.

"What is it, Father?" I asked, questioning his strange actions.

"You know your loud affectionate clingy teammate?"

"Kiba?"

"He's in the hospital."

"Oh."

I don't think it immediately processed.

"Wait…Kiba's in the hospital?" I repeated.

"Yes." My father answered. "His mother just called here to tell you."

"Oh." I said. "I see."

I knew I had an obligation to visit him in the hospital. After all, he had been on my team…

"She also told you to tell his girlfriend."

"Hinata?" I said.

"Whatever." My father answered.

I turned around and walked out the door. How odd it was that I had just said that. Hinata and Kiba had never decided that they were going out. I mean, what if Kiba actually did have a girlfriend and my assumption that Kiba's mother was mocking him by calling Hinata his girlfriend was completely wrong and I accidentally left some poor girl in the dark?

I didn't let it bother me too much because I soon forgot about it. Obviously it wasn't that important.

As I walked further away from my house, I realized that I had forgotten another thing. To tell my father that I had been nominated for the jounin exam. After contemplating my forgetfulness as I stood out in front of my house, I decided that I'd just tell him upon my return.

I went to Hinata's house and rang the doorbell.

The Hyuugas didn't really like me all that much, but I get the feeling that they don't like anyone who's not Hyuuga. Especially Kiba.

"Yeah?" said Hinata's little sister as she opened the door.

"Is Hinata at home?" I asked her.

"She is." Her sister replied. "And you are?"

"One of her teammates." I answered. I didn't throw in the 'former' part of it just because…well… I think Hinata still thinks of us as teammates even though I'm a chuunin.

"Okay, I'll get her." Said her sister as she shut the door. I could hear her yelling throughout the house, calling for Hinata. Then footsteps approached and opened the door.

"Hi Shino!" said Hinata. "How are you today?"

I suppose I should have answered her question, but I figured it was more important to tell her that something had happened to Kiba.

"Hinata, I just got a call from Kiba's mother." I said even though I personally hadn't gotten the call. I wasn't going to get all technical on Hinata. "Kiba's in the hospital."

Hinata gasped, looking shocked. She stuttered a bit, but nothing coherent came out of her mouth.

"I figured you'd want to know." I said.

"I'll get my coat!" she said finally as she sprinted back into her house to retrieve her coat. I guess that meant we were going to have to go to the hospital to visit Kiba.

I stood there and stared at the door.

I wonder why Hyuugas shut their doors all the time?

Hinata returned after a little while but she hadn't gotten her coat. I was going to question her about the absence of her coat, but I really just didn't feel like it at all.

"I'm ready." She said.

We began to walk to the hospital.

Hinata was power walking. She was coming so close to running that I actually had a bit of a hard time keeping up with her.

Once we got to the stairs, she hopped up the stairs, skipping every other one. She must have been really worried about him, but I was pretty sure it would be nothing serious. This was Kiba we're talking about here.

Then again…maybe I should have been worried.

"Is Inuzuka Kiba here?" I heard Hinata asking the nurse as I came around the corner. She hadn't really gained all that much time on me by hurrying so much because now the nurse was taking her sweet time to shuffle through her papers and look things up on the computer. I kind of felt like asking her to hurry herself along a bit, but she was peering curiously at her screen and double checking her papers.

I suddenly got the feeling that there had been a major miscommunication exchanged.

"Inuzuka Kiba you said?" she asked Hinata.

"Yes!" Hinata said eagerly. I could tell she was holding her breath. "Is he here?"

"We have an Inuzuka Akamaru here, but no Inuzuka Kiba." The nurse replied.

I suddenly felt like someone dropped a ton of bricks on my head. Yes, Kiba was here IN the hospital. But my father had implied that he was sick or injured when he was, in fact, just inside the hospital with Akamaru who was sick or injured.

"Akamaru?" I said in my stupefied state.

"Hey!" came Kiba's voice from down the hall. We both turned around to see Kiba coming over to us.

"Kiba!" Hinata gasped, as if the nurse telling us that he was perfectly fine wasn't enough. "You're all right!"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Kiba replied. "Akamaru's not doing to well though."

"What happened to him?" Hinata said, looking concerned.

Kiba then explained that he had knocked Akamaru around while they were out training and the dog had a broken leg. I felt like kicking myself for being so stupid and thinking things were ACTUALLY serious with Kiba for once.

"That's awful!" Hinata said as if nothing could be worse.

"Yeah well…Akamaru's getting pretty old…" Kiba began.

There were ten million things I could have been doing with my time other than sit around worrying about a dog's broken leg.

"I have things to do." I said. Then I realized that maybe that would upset Kiba that I seemed so insensitive to his dog's injuries, even though I sort of was. So, as I turned to leave, I stopped and thought of what I could say so I wouldn't sound stupid yet I would sound concerned. "Tell Akamaru I said to heal fast." I finally came up with, though I think I sounded pretty stupid.

"Okay Shino!" Kiba said.

I couldn't leave fast enough.

I had worried myself and worried Hinata over Akamaru getting a minor injury. Animals heal quickly so there was no reason to get worked up over something so small. Besides, the Hokage could fix an injury like that in just a few seconds.

I made my way home thinking about what exactly I had just gone through today. Briefly, for a moment in time, I had been rather…er… CONCERNED… about Kiba's well being.

I opened up the door to my house.

"Father," I said. My first priority was to tell him that I had been nominated for the jounin exam.

"Back so soon?" he said.

"Yeah, it was a false alarm." I said. "Father, the nominations for the jounin exam were today."

"Oh?" said my father. "And?"

"I got nominated."

"Congratulations, Shino." Said my father. "I became a jounin when I was seventeen as well."

"I'm sixteen, Father." I reminded him.

"Same thing." My father answered. "Oh, and Shino?"

"Yes?" I said.

"Don't you think it's time you started thinking about meeting with other young, teenage females your age?"

"What do you mean, Father?" I asked.

"For the sake of the clan's future." My father said, turning away.

"You mean a mate?" I concluded.

"Yes, eventually." My father answered. "Though you do not need to make an immediate decision. You're only seventeen after all."

"Father." I said. "I'm sixteen."

"Same thing."


	44. Haruno Sakura: Empty Promises

Haruno Sakura; 4 Years Later

Age 16

-Empty Promises-

I hadn't been promoted to the chuunin rank this year. Once again, only ONE person had passed this year and of course, it wasn't me.

I knew I wasn't the greatest ninja in the world but I was hoping that when it was announced that only one person got promoted that it would be ME this time around.

When I was on a team of three with Sasuke, he was able to make me look better simply by being there. I was able to work off of his wonder and I looked like a good ninja. Now that Sasuke is no longer on my team, I only have Naruto to work off of and he just makes me look worse.

It wasn't the fact that I wasn't a chuunin that bothered me. I knew that once I became a chuunin then Sasuke would notice me. I mean, that's what Ino did and it worked for her.

I'm not as pathetic as Ino though and I'm not going to go all out.

I had tried Lee's self-motivation technique to get myself to train hard this time. I told myself that if I didn't get promoted this year then I would quit being a ninja because obviously I'm not good enough.

If I quit being a ninja, then I could focus more on something that I was more naturally gifted at like looks to win Sasuke's heart.

As I walked home from the Hokage's office, I took a minute to let it all sink in.

I wasn't a chuunin.

I had tried so hard this year and I was SURE that I had made it and that Sasuke would notice me this time.

Shikamaru's empty words of "Try again next year." I'm going to remember them forever. The tone of his voice, the way his face looked and then my reaction.

I didn't want to admit it to myself but the longer I took to become a chuunin, the further away Sasuke got from me.

Ino was coming between us. She didn't really love Sasuke and he didn't love her back. She was only using him because having the hottest guy in Konoha as your boyfriend looks really good.

Sasuke didn't know better. His family's been dead for a long time and he's forgotten what love feels like. That's why he thinks he loves Ino.

That's why he needs me.

He needs me to help show him what love really is.

Picturing Sasuke's face in my head just then made me feel slightly light-headed. Not the way I USUALLY feel when I think of Sasuke…but something different.

Rather than the usual wonderful feelings I get from Sasuke's image, I felt sad and almost hopeless.

I was almost to my house and once I was there, I would be in the privacy of my own room and wouldn't have to worry about letting my feelings out in public.

I wasn't a chuunin?

Why not?

Why was INO a chuunin?

I was SO much smarter than Ino! The smartest in the class!! Well, the smartest one in the class that the tests showed anyway.

Why did Ino trick Sasuke like this?

It made me sick. My vision began getting slightly clouded and blurry. I raised my hands up and rubbed my eyes.

I can't be crying now. It's no big deal! A lot of people didn't make chuunin this year! It wasn't just me!

But Sasuke…

It was as if there were two people fighting inside my head. But it's not like I haven't been notorious for having a voice inside my head.

I quickly ran around the corner of a nearby house and let myself go.

I allowed myself to cry and the tears to flow. It didn't feel any better but at least I wasn't trying to hold it back any longer.

I had hardly been crying for a minute when I heard a voice behind me.

"SAKURA!!! SAKURA!! OVER HERE!! LOOK!! I'M UP HERE!!!"

I looked up to see Naruto was on the roof of the house I was standing next to. He appeared to lose his balance because five seconds later, he was on his head right in front of me.

Idiot.

"Oh. Hi Naruto." I greeted him to be polite. I seriously can't stand him.

"Hey Sakura, are you all right?" He asked me as he stood up. As if it was any of his business.

"Yes…" I told him, rubbing my eyes. I didn't need him to know I was crying.

"What's wrong?" he continued obnoxiously. "Were you crying?"

"No!" I lied.

"Yes you were, Sakura!" He said. "Come on, tell me what's wrong!"

Well, it's not like I could lie about it anymore. He knew I was crying. So I decided to give him the vaguest possible answer.

"I didn't get promoted to a chuunin…" I told him. It wasn't a lie.

"Oh." He told me. "Neither did I."

Big surprise there…

"But I didn't know that mattered to you so much cause I thought you were kinda… planning on stopping."

He didn't understand! Geez! That's why he's a guy!

"That's why I'm upset! I promised myself that if I didn't become a chuunin then I'd stop being a ninja right here and now! And I'm not a chuunin! So I'm going to stop! Obviously that's not what Sasuke's looking for!"

I put my hands on my hips, angry that he had forced me to tell the whole story.

"Well Sakura…" he started. He didn't continue. What was he going to say. I tapped my foot to show that I was waiting and when that didn't clue him in, I decided to prompt him.

"'Well Sakura…'?" I said for him. He's so stupid…

"Nothing!" he said, giving me a stupid grin.

I think it was time for me to go.

"If that's what you want to do, Sakura, you should do it! After all, it's YOUR life and you should lead it the way YOU want to, not the way anyone else wants to!"

What was that supposed to mean?

I bet he was telling me to quit being a ninja so that Sasuke would lose interest in me. Naruto probably thought that if Sasuke lost interest in me then I'd lose interest in Sasuke and then there would be a small tiny chance that I'd date Naruto! Well, there was NO WAY that would EVER happen.

"WHAT are you talking about, Naruto?" I asked him.

"Forget about it, Sakura! If it makes you feel any better, _I_ didn't pass the chuunin exam either!"

He already told me that. Like I needed to hear it twice! Like I needed to know that I was STILL on the same level as Naruto!

I was so NOT on the same level as Naruto.

He graduated at the BOTTOM of our class!!

If anything, the fact that he wasn't promoted and I wasn't promoted made me feel WORSE!

"No, it DOESN'T make me feel any better." I told him as I turned to walk away.

He didn't give up though.

"Hey, let's go get something to eat!" he said while chasing after him.

Yeah, after he had just insulted me?

"I can't, Naruto." I said, not even turning around. "I have plans today."

"How about tomorrow then?" He pushed.

He just doesn't get it. Maybe I should just say NEVER.

"No, I'm busy tomorrow too." I lied as I continued walking. Of ALL people for him to have a crush on, why did it have to be ME?

"Sakura, come back!" he said as he ran out in front of me, walking backwards. As if I was playing hard to get or something.

I decided to be honest with him.

Maybe that'd make him go away.

"Naruto, how many times to I have to tell you that you have absolutely no chance of ever getting a date with me?!" I yelled at him. Maybe I had yelled a little TOO loudly but maybe he'd get it.

"Oh Sakura!" he said. "You're so cute even when you're angry!"

That was the last straw! I was at the edge of my ropes with him! I couldn't even stand to look at him anymore!

I wound up my arm and soon he had my fist implanted in his face. He fell over on his back.

"Just get OUT of my face, Naruto." I told him. "And STAY out!"

I walked away, leaving him lying there on the ground.

The last thing I needed was to be seen with Naruto.

I began walking back to my house when I suddenly spotted Tenten standing next to a tree out of the corner of my eye.

I hadn't been talking to Tenten much lately, I don't know why but I decided to go over and talk to her. Maybe she could be my shoulder to cry on. A girl's got to be selfish every now and then.

As I got closer, I saw Neji behind the tree.

I definitely didn't want to go over there if Neji was over there because he is one of the scariest people in the entire world.

Unfortunately for me, Neji's also got excellent vision and I've got beautiful pink hair so he spotted me.

I could feel him glaring at me. Literally. It burned.

In order to save face and make it look like I wasn't spying on them, I walked over while waving. I was still a little angry from my meeting with Naruto so I wasn't really in the mood to talk much but I went over anyway.

"So did Sakura set you up to do this?" Neji asked Tenten, who was visibly upset. She has no reason to be upset, she's a chuunin now.

Tenten shook her head.

"I don't believe you." Neji said coldly.

What were they even talking about. I definitely came at a bad time.

"No…" said Tenten quietly. "It was all me. I just thought that maybe if I showed you that female ninjas were…"

"What?" Neji interrupted her. "All exactly the same?"

I found myself getting offended about what Neji said and I wasn't even there.

"You're all too caught up in love that you'll never amount to anything." Neji continued. "Tenten, you're just barely a chuunin because you've been too busy drooling over me and Sasuke…"

I thought about that. Since when did Tenten love Neji?

Oh well. I guess it'll never work out.

"And Sakura, you're too caught up trying to look beautiful for Sasuke that you'll probably never even surpass genin rank."

What?! Why was he saying this?! Why was he even dragging me into this?!

"What?" I asked, a bit of anger to my voice. However, I was still scared of Neji.

"The only female ninja I've seen amount to anything is Ino." Neji continued. That last comment could have been left out. It really burned. I hated to think that people thought Ino was better than me.

I could feel the anger filling up within me.

"Ino's twice as obnoxious about being with Sasuke!" I told Neji so that he wouldn't be misinformed from now on.

Neji sighed. As if he had ANY place to be sighing.

"From what I saw, Ino worked hard, became a ninja and impressed Sasuke because of that."

How DARE he!

Just as I was about to open my mouth to correct Neji to tell him that Ino only worked so hard to impress Sasuke and she was SO obsessed with impressing him that she became better, Tenten pushed past me and ran away.

I suddenly lost any or all bravery I had right then and there. There was NO way I could talk to Neji all by myself with no one there to protect me if he decided to kill me.

I looked over at him, glaring at me.

When Sasuke glares at me, I melt.

When Neji glares at me, I burn.

He seemed to have grown a couple of inches since Tenten left.

I felt a little awkward about turning to run away while he was glaring at me but I wanted to get out of there. Maybe he was trying to scare me away.

"I…have to go now." I told Neji, turning to leave.

"If you have any thoughts about continuing being a ninja, I suggest you go train." Neji said, coldly.

As I walked away, I couldn't help but think.

I didn't plan on continuing being a ninja. I promised myself that I would quit and I wasn't going to go back on my word.

I wondered if I had to go and tell anyone that I was quitting or if it just happened.

I wonder what Ino would say. Surely she'd laugh. She'd been able to make it so high while I haven't progressed at all in the four years I've been trying.

I wonder what SASUKE would say when he finds out I quit. That probably won't look good in his eyes.

Those eyes. The ones I had fallen in love with.


	45. Nara Shikamaru: A Bajillion

Nara Shikamaru; 4 Years Later

Age 16

-A Bajillion-

I hated waking up early in the morning but I had a bajillion things I had to do.

Whoa.

I knew I was tired when I started making up numbers.

I quickly walked to my office. It's so unfortunate that I have an office in the Hokage's administration building and I'm only sixteen. I went by the room where a bunch of chuunins and jounins were waiting. Why were they already here? I still had to pass out the chuunin vests…

I entered my office and closed the door behind me.

I had to make this quick.

Luckily, there was only one vest on my desk.

Why didn't the Hokage just do this herself?

Let's see…the one getting the vest would be…Tenten. Oh, I knew who she was. Well… I didn't KNOW her… I just knew she existed.

After I gave the vest to Tenten, I had to announce the nominated chuunins to enter the jounin exam, as well as the nominated jounins to enter the ANBU exam. AND THEN I had to work out the Consolidation stuff.

I figured Tenten was already waiting outside so I poked my head out to see someone standing there. I wasn't sure if it was her…

"Tenten?" I tried.

"Oh, hi Shikamaru!" she said with a wave. I guess it WAS her.

"Sorry, but I have to make this short." I said. "I've got a hundred other things to do today." At least I didn't use the word 'bajillion'. "Congratulations." I handed her the vest and she glowed with pride.

"Thanks so much!" she exclaimed. "Don't worry about it being short, though! I've got a hundred—"

I thought she was finished, though, and I accidentally left before she DID finish. I wasn't going to let it bother me though because I had a lot to do.

I grabbed the list of nominated ninjas on my way out, only being able to look them over for a bit before folding it in half and hurrying out the door. When I was half way there, I bumped into the Hokage.

"Why, hello Shikamaru." She said. "It's about time you showed up!"

"You could have started without me." I said.

"YOU have the list." She reminded me.

I held it up. "I guess." I said. "Let's get this over with."

"My thoughts exactly."

The Hokage opened up the door and the two of us went in. The room was packed with a lot of the jounins and chuunins of the village. Some of them had skill that was laughable and were crazy to think they deserved to be promoted, but I wasn't about to go around sharing that sort of information with them. It was just a simple reading of the list and then off to work on MORE things.

I cleared my throat and room immediately fell silent.

"The following jounins have been selected to have a try at joining the ranks of special jounin or ANBU." I read. "Atemo Naku, Dehou Dai, Detarame Futokutei, Guukan Iikagen, Junjo Fudou…"

Up to that point, it was pretty normal.

But then I saw a name that had been added at the end of the list. Not in my handwriting.

"…Nara Shikamaru…"

I looked at the Hokage but she only grinned and nodded.

How troublesome. How dare she put my name on the list even though I hadn't entered my name to be promoted…

But it was no time to think about that now. I had a room of eager chuunins who were now waiting to hear their names.

"The following chuunins have been selected to have a try at joining the ranks of the jounin." I read. "Kakuritsu Hensuu, Manbun Manpitsu, Mekura Uchi, Rangeki Ranhen, Sei Fairu, Hyuuga Neji, Aburame Shino, Mi Boshi."

That was the end of the list.

I folded the paper and looked out at the few excited expressions and the many disappointed ones.

"Thank you." I said. "If you have not been chosen to compete in the upcoming exams, then don't be discouraged because you have plenty of chances to succeed. And, just because you have been nominated, doesn't mean that you are a new rank."

"You are all dismissed!" the Hokage finished it up.

The group pretty much immediately dispersed after the Hokage commanded it.

"That wasn't TOO bad!" said the Hokage.

"I guess." I said.

She was still grinning. I was ready to voice my negative opinion of how she had put my name down and embarrassed me in front of everyone, but Lee suddenly came out of nowhere.

"Good morning Miss Hokage and Shikamaru!" Lee said,

"At ease." Said the Hokage in a mocking tone.

"Um…I'm going to look stupid…but I missed the end of the list…" Lee said. "Am I nominated?"

I don't remember. I read off those names without really thinking. I looked at the list a few times.

"No, sorry." I answered. "If you have not been chosen to compete in the upcoming exams, then don't be discouraged because you have plenty of chances to succeed. And, just because you have been nominated, doesn't mean that you are a new rank."

"Oh." Said Lee.

He continued to stand there.

"Okay…thanks though!" he said as he frolicked off. It probably didn't bother him all that much.

"Well, Shikamaru?" said the Hokage.

"I have work to do." I said. I could tell she WANTED me to be annoyed about how she had entered my name and I wasn't going to give her the satisfactory of knowing I was embarrassed.

So I left the room and went to my office.

It wasn't long before the Hokage came in.

"Shikamaru!" she said. "Aren't you going to thank me for nominating you to become apart of ANBU?"

"I don't want to be in ANBU." I said.

"You would make a FINE addition!" said the Hokage. "With your smarts, you could be the leader in no time!"

"I don't want to be." I said. "Besides, I didn't enter my name to be nominated."

"You don't HAVE to enter your name in order to be nominated." Said the Hokage. "The Hokage, that's me, can decide when someone is ready and just make the decision on the fly!"

"I still didn't enter my name though." I said.

"Oh stop whining, Shikamaru." The Hokage said, irritated that I was not reacting in the way she had predicted. "You should have seen your face!"

I heard someone approach outside the door. It sounded a lot like Chouji. "You could have at least told me beforehand." I said, trying not to sound distracted.

"That would have taken all the fun out of it." the Hokage laughed.

I never should have said that. That's what she WANTED me to say.

"Well, I have some important matters to attend to." The Hokage said after clearing her throat. "You can take the rest of the day off."

Did she NOT hear me when I told her I had work to do? Besides, she was the one who put ME in charge with Consolidation this year. "I can't." I reminded her. "I'm swamped in Consolidation that you put off to the last second and then dropped on me."

"I've got other things to do!" the Hokage said, not responding to my comment at all and just opening up the door.

I sat down with a sigh and pulled the papers out to begin work.

The Hokage left, and Chouji poked his head in. I knew it was Chouji.

"I thought that was you, Chouji." I said.

I didn't see much of Chouji anymore. He's still a genin so he didn't get assigned missions often. And, since I spent all my time sitting around in my office and sending people on missions then I certainly didn't get to see him a lot.

"So you knew I was listening to your conversation?" Chouji asked.

Well, I knew he had been there, but I didn't think he was listening to the conversation.

"Nope." I said truthfully. "You just told me."

"Shikamaru, you're so smart!" Chouji complimented me.

I heard that so much these days that it pretty much went in one ear and out the other.

"So um…you're working on Consolidation?" Chouji said, leaning over to get a glimpse of what I was working on. Technically, it's supposed to be confidential but it's only CHOUJI…I mean… what's he going to do?

"Yeah." I answered. "For the kids a year older than us. Don't worry, you still have another year."

"Shikamaru… I've been thinking a lot lately…" Chouji said, sounding nervous. "…About Consolidation…"

"Don't worry about it." I said, sensing that the thought of leaving for a year wasn't exactly thrilling him. "It's not as bad as everyone makes it out to be. I would think it would be more painful for the teachers than the students."

"How so?" Chouji asked.

I finished writing up a letter to one kid who's got to go up into the mountains. I folded up the paper and put it inside my desk, figuring I'd send it out later. "It's a year of training with a couple of kids who think they're all that and a bag of chips." I replied.

"Yeah…"

"A full year. I mean, you ARE aware of course that they've recently changed the rules so there's no returning home after six months? Just a straight year of training."

"So I've heard…" Chouji said.

I personally thought that it was a lousy idea. "Wasn't MY decision." I said.

"So uh…I heard you got nominated for the special jounin exam!" Chouji said, sounding excited.

"There is no special jounin exam." I explained. I guess it was okay for him not to know something like this. "There's an ANBU exam. You can become a special jounin just when the Hokage decides you're trustworthy, or you can take the ANBU exam."

"Oh, I know you'll become a special jounin, Shikamaru!" Chouji said.

Chouji was being rather agreeable. He usually is nice like this, but it was a little suspicious. I put my pen down and decided to look at Chouji and demand straight out that he had to tell me the REAL reason he came here.

"Chouji, you didn't come here just to make small talk." I said.

"Yeah…I guess…" Chouji said. "There's no pulling anything over YOUR eyes, Shikamaru!"

He laughed a little, but I wanted him to say whatever he was going to say so I could get back to work.

Yeah…that sounded pretty good. Maybe I should just say it. "Chouji, say whatever you've come here to say because I have a lot to work on. Consolidation is just in another week and we still don't have a teacher to do it."

"Shikamaru…I've been thinking about my being a ninja."

"Uh huh."

"And…I just don't think it's my thing. You and Ino are both really great ninjas, but I'm staying the same. In fact, I'm getting worse!"

Chouji, Chouji…

I picked up my pen and started writing again. Was I trying to distract myself? What was I going to say to him? What could I possibly say to him? I could decide Chouji's potential future just by what I said to him.

He stood up. He probably thought I wasn't going to answer.

"Chouji." I said before he left. "Is this about Consolidation next year?"

Chouji nodded.

"Don't worry about Consolidation." I said. "It's not as bad as everyone says. You'll be with people you know, I can tell you that much." Those people most likely being Naruto, Hinata and Kiba… unless, of course, they suddenly became really really good out of nowhere.

"Yeah but—"

"I don't think you should quit being a ninja." I said, figuring I'd be straight with him. "You've got an advanced bloodline, which means you're automatically a step above everyone else. If Ino and I can become great ninjas without advanced bloodlines then you'll be fine. All you have to do is apply yourself."

"You're right!" Chouji smiled. "Shikamaru! You're so smart!"

Well, Chouji. I'm just sorry I can't do a little more.


	46. Uchiha Sasuke: My Hopeful Girlfriend

Uchiha Sasuke; 4 Years Later

Age 16

-My Hopeful Girlfriend-

Today was set aside for nominating ninjas to promotion. When going from genin to chuunin, one required his teacher to nominate him in order to take the exam. When going from chuunin to jounin, it was much more complicated.

If you wished to be promoted, you would inform the Hokage. The Hokage would mull over the decision for a little while and then when the Jounin exam got slowly closer, he or she would announce in front of everyone whether or not you would make an attempt at the exam.

That's why you never tell anyone whether you requested to be nominated.

I was standing in a room with numerous other chuunins and jounins. Chuunins came to be nominated to the jounin exam and jounins came to be nominated to the special jounin level or the ANBU squad.

One of the many people in the room was Ino. She still confused me.

"Come on, Sasuke…" she said. "Tell me…did you ask to enter the Jounin exam?"

I shook my head. I wasn't going to tell her.

Sure, I had. Of course. I asked every chance I got. The sooner I became a jounin, the closer I was to killing Itachi. And the sooner I was to killing Itachi, the happier I was going to be.

That's when the door opened and the Hokage came in. Beside her was Shikamaru, carrying a slip of paper that I knew held the names of those who were being nominated for promotion.

The Hokage sat down. Shikamaru opened up the paper and addressed us.

"The following jounins have been selected to have a try at joining the ranks of special jounin or ANBU." He said. What followed was a list of names that I mostly didn't recognize. When he sounded like he was nearing the end, he sort of stumbled over the last name. "…Nara Shikamaru…"

Stupid Shikamaru…

"The following chuunins have been selected to have a try at joining the ranks of the jounin." He read. He proceeded to ramble off a bunch of names, but I was only listening for mine. "—Hyuuga Neji—"

Stupid Neji…

"—Aburame Shino—"

Stupid Shino…

"—Mi Boshi—"

Stupid…Mi Boshi…whoever you may be…

After reading off the final name, he folded up the paper.

"Thank you." He said. "If you have not been chosen to compete in the upcoming exams, then don't be discouraged because you have plenty of chances to succeed. And, just because you have been nominated, doesn't mean that you are a new rank."

"You are all dismissed!" said the Hokage with a wave of her hand.

I tried not to openly react and just pretend as though I hadn't entered.

"Oh, too bad!" sighed Ino. "I put my name in. Oh well!"

We both left the Hokage's office. I tried not to sigh, but I had really wanted to become a jounin so I could go on more advanced missions in order to get more experience. And then I could kill Itachi.

"How about that Shikamaru?" Ino said. "Pretty cheesy of him to read his own name, don't you think?"

"I don't think he knew it would be there." I said.

"Maybe." Ino shrugged.

She took my hand.

"So, what should we do for the rest of the day?" she asked. "Train? Go dancing? Both?"

It was hard to keep up with Ino. She certainly was a handful. She wanted something different every day and even though she'd ask me what I wanted to do, she normally already knew what she wanted and we'd end up doing that.

We've been going out for almost a year, something I never thought I'd be able to just say about any girl.

"I don't know…" I answered, knowing that no matter what I said it would be irrelevant to what we actually did. "I'd kinda like to train…"

"You ALWAYS want to train!" Ino sighed. "Let's do something else for once."

See what I mean?

"I'm not in the mood to go dancing." I said.

"Oh, okay." She said. She looked up. It usually helped her think.

It was then that Chouji suddenly came by us, looking like he was in a hurry.

Ino stopped and spun around.

"Chouji!" she said. "What's up? Where are you running off to?"

"Oh, hey Ino!" he said, turning around. "Did you get nominated?"

"No, not this time." She said. She considerately didn't mention that I didn't get nominated either. "But guess who did?"

"Shikamaru?" Chouji said, his eyes widening.

"Yeah!" she said. "Sasuke doesn't think he knew it was coming."

She grabbed my arm and hugged it. I shrugged and nodded.

"That's funny!" said Chouji. "I was just on my way to see him! I'll make sure to congratulate him!"

"Try not to embarrass him!" Ino called after him as he left.

I thought about Shikamaru's promotion as Ino and I continued to walk.

How could someone like him…someone who graduated above ONLY Naruto, possibly already be entering an exam that would qualify him for participating in ANBU? Especially since I was still a chuunin, not even being nominated for the jounin exam?

He had been working at the Hokage's right hand ever since he was only in the chuunin rank. How had he done it?

"Hm…" Ino said out loud. "I just thought of what we can do."

"What?" I asked.

"Follow me!" she said. She already had a firm grip on my arm and she began to pull me. I didn't resist and eventually moved on my own in the direction that she wanted.

I found myself in front of her house.

"This way!" she said, pulling me around back. She jumped up into a tree and beckoned me to follow her. I did, and then she pointed at her bedroom window. She jumped inside.

After a moment of hesitation, I did too.

"Shh!" she hissed.

I looked around her room. What did she want to do?

As if I didn't already know…

Everything felt so backwards…so upside down.

This wasn't right.

"Sasuke, I've been wanting to show you this ever since I first fell in love with you after the disaster happened to your clan." Ino said, sitting down on her bed.

Why did I suddenly feel so sick?

"I have I sit down…" I said, feeling a little dizzy.

"Sasuke, are you all right?" she said. "I'm sorry I brought up your family. But you really have to see this!"

"I can't…" I said, putting a hand on my head and turning away. I couldn't do this, not yet anyway.

"Look, Sasuke."

I didn't look.

"Sasuke…look."

I slowly opened my eyes and turned to face her. She was holding a piece of paper that was scrawled on with crayons. I couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief as, thankfully, the room stopped spinning.

I took the paper from her and turned it around so I could see it better.

It was a poorly drawn illustration of two people walking and holding hands. They had red and purple hearts floating above their heads.

"You drew that our first day of school." She explained. "And you gave it to me."

I looked at the paper once more. I examined the people more closely.

"Is this supposed to be me?" I questioned, noting the Uchiha fan that only I could be associated with. She nodded. So then I looked at the other person. It was quite difficult to tell who or what exactly it was.

But then my eyes fell down to the bottom of the picture where, in very sloppy handwriting and clearly written by someone with only five years of coordination, the words, "Uchiha Sasuke and Ino".

"A picture of us." I said finally. "You kept it all this time?"

"Yeah…" she said. "It's been a secret. I've always had it. I look at it all the time. I always wondered why you didn't put my last name there either. I know it's because my name is long and hard to spell for someone your age… but I also like to think that you mentally gave me the name 'Uchiha' even at that age."

She had obviously had a lot of time to think about this. But I didn't remember ever thinking about marriage at that age. As a matter of fact, I never really thought about marriage at all, seeing it only as a step I had to go through in order to revive my clan.

"Ino…really." I said. "That's highly unlikely."

"I know." She sighed, pulling one knee up to her chest as she sat down. "But I can dream, can't I?"

"I guess." I shrugged.

I could hear footsteps coming up the stairs. I knew right away that it had to be Ino's father, Inoshi because her mother would have lighter steps than him. Ino also looked painfully aware of this fact too.

"Quick!" she said in a loud whisper. "Hide!"

"Hide?" I said, somewhat surprised.

I didn't have any time to react at all because she nearly hoisted me up right off my feet and tossed me under her bed. Then she jumped onto her bed just as the door swung open. I didn't say a word or move, only listened.

"Ino, I didn't see you come in." said her father.

"Oh really?" she said. "I did."

I felt a sneeze coming on.

"Well obviously." He said. "Your mother's making dinner. What do you want to have?"

"Anything's fine." Ino replied. "I'm not that hungry."

"All right then." He said, shutting the door.

I sneezed.

Ino let out a sigh of relief and then leaned her bed, looking at me.

"Hey!" she said.

"What was that all about?" I asked.

"I haven't told my parents about you yet." She said with a smile.

I found that to be completely surprising. I happened to know that she kept her fanatical obsession with me public… but I guess that was only when we weren't going out. I suppose that now since we were an official couple, it had to be a big secret.

"You going to sit under there all day?" Ino said.

"Guess not." I said, pulling myself out. I stood up and she sat on her knees on her bed so we were about the same height.

"I have to go downstairs now." She said softly.

"I gathered." I said as she took my hands.

She bounced our hands in place. "Sasuke, you're so shy." She said.

Shy? I've never been called shy before.

"I've never…been called that before." I said.

"See?" she said. "You're blushing."

I didn't feel myself blushing.

She kissed me. "I'll see you tomorrow." She said.

"I'll be there." I said.

I went over to her window and hopped up on the windowsill. I waved to her and she dreamily waved back. I jumped to the tree and then to the ground.

I thought about her.

She had waited for me all this time just because of a silly little drawing from when we were five years old.

Girls really were complicated.

But I suppose it was my duty to try and understand someone like Ino who isn't just a rabid admirer whose love is based solely on infatuation.

Could love really be real at such a young age?

My hormones told me it was true, but my head told me not a chance.

I had never pictured myself having a girlfriend before Itachi was killed. But Ino was something special. Something special, all right. She was different than Sakura… different from all the other girls. I guess that's why she's my girlfriend.


	47. Hyuuga Neji: The Burden of Female Ninjas

Hyuuga Neji; 4 Years Later

Age 17

-The Burden of Female Ninjas-

This was the first year I had entered my name in to be nominated to be put in the jounin exam. I didn't think that entering the exam prematurely would be a very good idea since the exams were dangerous so I wasn't going to jump the gun at all.

But now I thoroughly believed that I was ready to enter the exam and do well.

I was gathered in the Hokage's office, waiting for her to enter with the list of names of people who would be nominated. I was confident that I would be one of them.

The Hokage did enter. She was a little late, but I was willing to let it slide as long as I was nominated.

She came in and sat down in her seat.

I hadn't even noticed that Shikamaru had come in behind her with the paper that listed the names.

The room fell silent as Shikamaru lifted the paper so he could read it, though I didn't doubt that he already knew the list to heart.

"The following jounins have been selected to have a try at joining the ranks of special jounin or ANBU." He said.

I didn't have to listen to this group of names because I, most unfortunately, did not fall within the category of jounin just yet. That, however, would not be a fact for very much longer.

I looked up when I noticed a break in his speech.

"…Nara Shikamaru…" he said.

How could he be promoted to special jounin or ANBU? He was at the bottom of his class when he graduated the academy. I was a year older and I had been the number one rookie of my year.

After faltering for a moment or two, Shikamaru continued with the list. "The following chuunins have been selected to have a try at joining the ranks of the jounin." He said. Then he began to read the names.

The names were not in any sort of order, so it was impossible to anticipate whether or not my name would be called.

"—Hyuuga Neji—"

I knew it would be.

I didn't have to listen to any more of the list because my name had been called.

It was now time for some intense training to prepare myself for the exam. Though I knew I would perform well, I didn't need a fluke occurring like the one that happened in the first Chuunin exam I participated in, when I fought against Naruto and lost. It was a complete and utter fluke.

"Thank you." I heard Shikamaru, zoning in once I realized he was reaching the end of his speech. "If you have not been chosen to compete in the upcoming exams, then don't be discouraged because you have plenty of chances to succeed. And, just because you have been nominated, doesn't mean that you are a new rank."

"You are all dismissed!" said the Hokage with a wave of her hand.

Well, that was easy enough.

The exam was in another week or so, meaning I had plenty of time to prepare myself.

I exited the office in haste and reached the outdoors only to be practically ambushed by a very excited looking Tenten.

"Neji!" she said happily. "Take a look at this!"

She spun around, modeling her brand new chuunin vest that she already had on.

"Very nice." I said sarcastically.

"Aren't you impressed?" she said.

Why would I be impressed with something like that? Tenten was seventeen years old and was only now reaching the rank of Chuunin. Besides, she was the last on our team to become a Chuunin, missing the Consolidation by only a few weeks.

"No," I told her. "If anything, I'm rather ashamed that you and I were on the same team. It certainly says something about the other female ninjas that graduated the same year as us if our supposed best one is only now being promoted."

"Neji…" she said, looking as though she had never expected that answer or any answer like that to ever come out of my mouth. She knows me better than that.

"What's worse, now my time is being wasted." I said.

I knew she still was attracted to me. Just by the way she continued to "bump into me" every time I turned the corner and suggest that we spend the day together for "old time's sake". It was really beginning to get on my nerves and I didn't know what I had to do or say to make her stop.

"But…what…" Tenten begun but she was suddenly interrupted by the painfully familiar sounds of…

Lee.

"HEY YOU TWO!!!" he yelled, stampeding out of the Hokage's office. I hadn't seen him in there for the nominations, but I had also not heard his name. I didn't expect him to be nominated. I am on a much higher level than he.

"Oh, hi Lee!" said Tenten.

"TENTEN!!" screamed the extremely distracted Lee. "You have your vest! CONGRATULATIONS!!!"

"Yeah!" said Tenten, caressing the collar of her vest. I rolled my eyes. "I'm the only one who passed this time around!"

I couldn't believe that officially I was on the same level as these two even though I was vastly much better than the two of them combined. Oh well, it wouldn't be for very much longer. I was going to pass the Jounin exam for sure.

"Now we're ALL chuunins!" Lee yelled. "YAY!!"

I wasn't going to say anything, but the fact that he really actually DID think that he was on the same level as me made me get a little offended. "I won't be a chuunin for long." I reminded him. Perhaps he had not heard my name when Shikamaru had called it for nomination.

"That's right!" Lee said. "Congratulations on being nominated!"

So he HAD heard it. He was just choosing to be ignorant. That is so like Lee. After all, he's the one who believed he could be a great ninja with just taijutsu alone so I suppose I can't blame him for believing that he could ever surpass me in my ninja ability.

"Hey Lee, don't you want to know how Sakura did?" Tenten asked.

"Yeah!" said Lee excitedly.

"Well, when she found out she wasn't promoted, she quit."

"She what?"

Blah blah blah. Sakura was a useless ninja and all she ever did was get in the way and take up space for other potential ninjas who were better than her. It didn't take much to be better than Sakura, though.

"Good." I said. "One less to have to worry about." I decided that that was a good enough closing statement for me and it was time to go. I had to train… or something. "I have to leave now."

Without waiting for them to reply, I turned and left.

I tried not to concern myself with what was going on behind me since I could see it and all, but Lee and Tenten appeared to get in a bit of a fight. Oh well. It's not like whether or not they were on good terms with each other really mattered to me.

"Oh—sorry!" said a girl as she bumped into me and almost dropped everything she was carrying.

"Watch where you're going." I advised her.

Girls are so clumsy. But the worst part is, most of them pretend to be clumsy because they have it in their heads that guys are attracted to a useless and helpless girl.

That was most certainly not the case and whatever girl thought up that revelation is the stupidest of them all.

Unfortunately, I happened to notice that Tenten was following me.

I tried to lose her, but I was largely unsuccessful. I dodged behind a tree and leaned up against it.

She stomped over. "Hyuuga Neji!" she demanded.

"What?" I said.

"I just don't understand you!" she yelled. "What you're looking for is a woman who is strong! But look at me! I bent over backwards to become a chuunin for you!"

"Exactly." I said. "I have no interest in a woman who's doing something solely to attract the attention of a man."

"What will it take for me to get you to notice me?!" Tenten demanded.

What a good question. What WOULD it take?

"You're not a Hyuuga, for one thing, Tenten." I said. "I cannot marry outside the clan."

"I'm not thinking of MARRIAGE!" said Tenten. "I just want to—" But she stopped and cleared her throat.

That's when I looked up and saw Sakura standing there as if she belonged. Sakura certainly had a hand in a lot of girls suddenly getting what they wanted. She enjoyed playing matchmaker. I could tell that it had been Sakura's idea for Tenten to confront me. But what irritated me the most about it all was that she was openly observing us from only a few feet away. The least she could do was hide, even though I could have spotted her no matter where she was.

"So did Sakura set you up to do this?" I said to Tenten who looked utterly defeated.

Tenten shook her head.

"I don't believe you." I said. I hate being lied to.

"No…" said Tenten quietly. "It was all me. I just thought that maybe if I showed you that female ninjas were…"

"What?" I interrupted. "All exactly the same?"

Tenten didn't know how to answer to that. I'm sure that's not what she had intended on saying, but it might as well have been. Whatever she was going to say would have been untrue.

"You're all too caught up in love that you'll never amount to anything." I said, hoping to open her eyes for one last time. I didn't want to have to explain this again. "Tenten, you're just barely a chuunin because you've been too busy drooling over me and Sasuke…"

Tenten looked down at the ground. I looked at Sakura who was only standing idly by CONTINUING to watch us as if we didn't know she was there even though we so obviously did considering she was just STANDING in front of us. You'd think that, with all her experience, Sakura would at least know how to hide while she spied on people.

"And Sakura, you're too caught up trying to look beautiful for Sasuke that you'll probably never even surpass genin rank."

"What?" said Sakura as if what I had just said was completely outrageous.

"The only female ninja I've seen amount to anything is Ino." I said, and it was completely true. Well, with the exception of the Hokage but she can't handle herself without Shikamaru or her other MALE assistants.

"Ino's twice as obnoxious about being with Sasuke!" Sakura yelled.

I sighed. That was definitely like women to change the subject and talk about other girls behind their backs.

"From what I saw, Ino worked hard, became a ninja and impressed Sasuke because of that."

Sakura only stood there fuming. I suppose Tenten had had enough because she pushed past Sakura and ran away in tears. If women weren't so weak then they wouldn't have to cry all the time.

Now it was only Sakura and I.

It was time for her to fess up for what she did.

Or leave.

She wouldn't leave.

Why wouldn't she leave?

"I…have to go now." Said Sakura finally as she turned to leave. I was going to let her go since she had clearly been affected, but I decided to give her one last word of advice to make her think.

"If you have any thoughts about continuing being a ninja, I suggest you go train." I said.

She didn't even flinch. She just kept walking, which suggested her destination was not training grounds. Female ninjas…

What's worse, I was going to have to deal with them my entire life. But especially Hinata. Then again, it's not like she's a ninja anymore. But she's still in the Main House.

And I hate the Main House.


	48. Inuzuka Kiba: A Hug

**A word to the wise: If, by chapter 48 of a story you are NOT enjoying it, chances are, it does not suit your taste and you won't come to enjoy it by chapter 49, 50, 51, 52 etc. So if you are this far into reading our story and find that you simply cannot handle the events occuring in it then click on the back arrow on your screen and find some other story to read. That's all.**

Inuzuka Kiba; 4 Years Later

Age 16

-A Hug-

"All right, Akamaru!" I said as I put on my favorite black sweatshirt. "Get ready because I'm coming right at you!"

"Don't warn me about it!" Akamaru advised me. Like he knows better than I do how to fight.

The two of us were training in my backyard. The best thing about training in my backyard is that it's big and has lots of trees.

"I just wanted to tell you because you're old." I told him. It's true. He's got to be something like…forty-five by now.

"Well, don't go easy on me because of it!" he told me. Jerk. Like I'm going to go easy on him.

I got down on all fours. Sometimes, it helps me get a better start so that I can go faster. Then, using my awesome ninja abilities, I launched at Akamaru in what had to have been the most skillful, fastest take off EVER.

He obviously wasn't ready for my intense speed because he just stood there like a moron. I crashed right into him with my shoulder, knocking him to the ground.

"Akamaru!" I yelled at him. He didn't even block!!

Akamaru just lied there. Not moving.

I shook him around a few times, calling his name.

Still didn't move.

HE'S DEAD!! OH NO!!!

I scooped him up in my arms and didn't even bother running inside. I went DIRECTLY to the hospital.

Being a ninja has its benefits, however because I was able to get there in almost no time and I had Akamaru checked in right away.

While Akamaru was getting checked out, I couldn't bear to see him in pain so I went over to a payphone and called my mother.

Just as I dialed our home's phone number, a doctor came over to me. I hung up the phone so that I could hear what he said.

"We checked your dog out, sir." He told me. He had a big mustache. "And it appears his leg is broken. We could tell just by looking at it."

"Oh thank god!" I said. HE WASN'T DEAD!!

But I guess the fact that his leg was broken was a bad thing.

"One more thing…" the man continued. "This isn't a vet. We let it slide this time. But next time, take your dog to the vet."

I had never been so outraged! How dare he!!

That's when I called my mom up and explained the whole situation to her. She was outraged too.

I went back into Akamaru's room. He was being fitted in a little cast. He looked like he was in pain. Poor little guy. I must have hit him a little too hard.

I sat by his bed watching the whole thing. It must have been twenty minutes before they finished. Akamaru was still sleeping.

I got bored waiting for him to wake up. I looked around the room, played with the stethoscope, licked a couple of tongue depressors and put on a hospital gown. But it didn't fit over my sweatshirt so I had to take it off first in order to fit it over so I hung it up on the back of the door.

I suddenly heard some familiar voices outside the room. I walked over to the doorway and saw Shino and Hinata standing there! They were here to visit Akamaru!! He IS their forth teammate after all. I took off the hospital gown and I called out to them.

"Hey!" I yelled.

"Kiba!" Hinata yelled happily. "You're all right!"

What was she talking about? It was AKAMARU who wasn't.

"Yeah, I'm fine." I told her. "Akamaru's not doing to well though."

"What happened to him?" she asked me, anxiously. I decided to explain the whole situation to him.

"We were training in the backyard and I think I must have hit him too hard or something cause his leg broke." I said. It wasn't on purpose but that's how it happened.

"That's awful!" she said. I think she was nervous or something.

"Yeah well…Akamaru's getting pretty old…" I said. I stopped in a little while. I didn't want to think about it anymore. He was getting old and I couldn't convince myself that he was staying forever. But he still had a long time.

"I have things to do." Shino said out of NOWHERE. Shino is so weird. But that's why I love 'im! "Tell Akamaru I said to heal fast."

"Okay Shino!" I told him as he left. Hinata then turned to me.

"Can I go and see Akamaru?" she asked me.

"Sure!" I told her. Why WOULDN'T she be able to?!

We were walking to Akamaru's room pretty quietly and just as we reached the room, she said something.

"Kiba…" she said.

"Yeah?"

"I have to admit…" she started.

"Yeah?" he repeated.

Her face turned red. She must be worried about Akamaru.

"I thought YOU were the one who was injured." She said. Oh! That's why were face was red! It's because she was embarrassed that she so ridiculously thought that it was ME in the hospital.

"Oh that's all right, Hinata!" I laughed. "But you know me."

We went into Akamaru's room where Akamaru had woken up!

"You're awake, Akamaru!" I told him. "How does your leg feel?"

"How do you think it feels?" he asked me as if he had any reason to be angry. I guess he did have reason to be angry. I broke his leg. "This hurts like a mother."

"Yeah, sorry about that Akamaru." I admitted to him. "Hinata came to visit you though."

I looked over at Hinata who had sat on Akamaru's bed. Her face suddenly turned bright red. Maybe she wasn't feeling very well or something. Or maybe she was still embarrassed about thinking that it was me who got hurt!

"Hinata, are you all right?" I asked her.

"I-I-I…I'm okay." She told me quickly. She cleared her throat a few times. Maybe she has a cold. "Is Akamaru okay?"

"Yeah, he's fine." I told her with a shrug. "Just needs a few day's rest, right Akamaru?"

"I will if you wait on me hand and foot." Akamaru said.

He's such a brat sometimes but I knew he was joking.

I looked over at Hinata who was shivering.

"Kiba…um…" Hinata said to me suddenly. She didn't have a sweatshirt with her so maybe she wanted to use mine. "Um… uh… I…"

She must not have wanted to ask me for it. Maybe I'll offer to her so that she won't have to.

"Hinata, are you cold?" I asked her, looking around for it. I forgot where I put it.

"A little bit…" she told me. I knew she was cold.

I found it hanging on the back of the door so I grabbed it and tossed it to her. "Here, you can wear this if you want!"

She caught with a bit of a cough. "…Th…Thank you…" She put it on. It suited her pretty well. At least the color did.

Suddenly, my mom came into the room. I didn't even smell her! I must have been too distracted!

"Oh, what is it NOW?" she asked me. "If it isn't you, Kiba, it's Akamaru! When will it ever end?"

How could she say that?! Akamaru was lying RIGHT there in front of her in so much pain!

"Mom!" I scolded her. "Don't say that in front of Akamaru!"

"Say what?" My mom asked. What was she trying to say? Doesn't she care about Akamaru?!

"You should have told me you were going to come here." My mom told me. "I looked out the window and suddenly you were gone."

"There was no time to tell you!" I told her. "Akamaru looked DEAD to me!"

"You should have checked him better!" my mom said as if she was right. "You worried me sick!"

My mom suddenly paused and turned to Hinata.

"Uh…hi…" Hinata said slowly.

She went over to Hinata and began sniffing her. Hinata didn't look very happy about it. Of course she didn't. She wasn't used to it! Her family doesn't do that!

Besides, it's not like she was sniffing Hinata affectionately.

"Mom, you're making Hinata feel uncomfortable." I told her.

"Kiba, she smells like YOU all over!" My mom said. "Where you two hugging and kissing?"

I had never been so insulted in all my life! What if Hinata thought that I go home and talk about this all the time with my mom?!

I don't. But Hinata doesn't know that.

"Mom!" I yelled at her. "Don't say that! You know it's not true!"

"Do I Kiba?" she asked. "I mean, you ARE getting older!"

"Yeah but that doesn't mean anything!" I said.

"Kiba, I'm actually surprised that you DON'T have a girlfriend by now!" my mom said.

Wow. I think my mom LIKES embarrassing me.

"Kiba…I actually have to go now!" said Hinata quickly as she stood up and walked out the door.

"Now look what you did!" I told my mom. "You made her upset!"

I was so angry that my mom made Hinata upset. Especially when she came to visit Akamaru.

Well, I needed some time to think so I decided to go outside for a bit.

Only problem is…

Hinata still had my sweatshirt.

It would probably be best if I went to her house to get my sweatshirt back. That way, I could apologize to her for my mom being so annoying.

I had been to Hinata's house many times before so getting there was absolutely no problem. It was getting to her ROOM that would be the hardest since her family is kind of weird.

I knocked on the door and in very little time, the door was answered by a younger girl. I'm glad it wasn't Hinata's dad because he's kind of a psycho.

"Is Hinata home?" I asked her.

"She's in her room." The girl told me. She stood there for a minute, not doing anything. I coughed a bit.

"Could I talk to her?" I asked her. "I just want to get my sweatshirt back."

She moved aside and pointed to the stairs.

"Up the stairs, second door on the right." She told me. I thanked her and ran up the stairs.

Or…I might NOT have thanked her before running up the stairs.

It doesn't matter.

I found her bedroom and rather than just rudely barging in, I decided to knock.

No one came to the door, instead, I heard Hinata's voice on the inside.

"Come in…" she said, quietly. But it was loud enough so I walked right in.

She looked obviously upset. She had been crying, I could tell. When you have white eyes, it's hard to hide when you're crying.

"Hinata, are you okay?"

She looked up at me and suddenly began crying even more. Was _I_ making her cry? I don't know what I had done but if I had done something to hurt her, I didn't mean to.

"Hinata, I'm so sorry!" I told her. I was still curious about what happened. "Did I do something to hurt you?"

She shook her head and tried to say something. She couldn't get the words out because she was so upset.

The sad way she looked at me hurt me. I didn't want to see her like that. I needed to do something to help her.

I reached my arms out and wrapped them around her body. She was shivering slightly so I pulled her in tightly. She stopped shivering at that moment.

It never fails. Hugs always make people feel better when they're down. My mom does it to me.

"Hinata…"

She stopped crying and took a few deep breaths. Worked like a charm. I felt happy that I had made her feel better.

I backed up and looked at her, to make sure she was okay.

"All better?" I asked.

She nodded at me, still looking a little shaken.

"What's wrong, anyway?" I asked. I needed to know.

"It's just my father." She told me. I could tell it was a lie but I really hope it was. If it WAS her father though, that would make me angry.

"Oh, I see." I said, just to give her assurance.

Today was just not a good day for me. First I break Akamaru's leg, then I make Hinata cry. Or…I DIDN'T make Hinata cry.

Or I HOPE I didn't make Hinata cry.

I don't know. I'd ask her later.


	49. Akimichi Chouji: Apply Myself

Akimichi Chouji; 4 Years Later

Age 16

-Apply Myself-

Even though I promised myself I would train harder than I ever had before, I found myself only getting weaker and less motivated. I was all alone and didn't have my teammates to push me,

Maybe I wasn't really cut out for this ninja business.

And, as Asuma and I finished up our training session, I figured maybe I should tell him so he didn't have to waste his time anymore. If I didn't plan on making any advancement in my ninja abilities, Asuma probably wanted to go off and find new students.

I'd have to decide before Consolidation next year. I only had one more chuunin exam to succeed in.

"Asuma…" I said as we both sat down to catch our breath before the next training session started.

I wiped my face with a towel and Asuma did so as well.

"What is it, Chouji?" he asked.

"I don't know about all this." I sighed.

"All what?"

"All this…ninja stuff."

"What do you mean?"

I looked at Asuma. He was peering at me curiously.

I guess I was being kind of vague.

"I just don't see myself becoming a great ninja!" I said with a shrug. "And you are probably getting frustrated because you still have to teach me."

"Chouji!" said Asuma. "That's a silly thing to say! I want to teach you until you become a great ninja!"

He didn't say anything. We took turns looking up at the sky just like Shikamaru used to do.

"In any case, Chouji…" he began again. "You don't HAVE to become a great ninja. Being a simply GOOD ninja is fine enough."

"But I want to be a great ninja like Ino and Shikamaru…" I said.

It did make me feel rather insignificant that my two former teammates were doing so much better than I was. I was happy for and proud of them both, but I couldn't help but wonder when it would be MY turn!

"I think you should talk to Shikamaru." Asuma said.

"I hardly get to see him anymore." I said. "He's always so busy."

"Well…" Asuma said, looking at his watch. "The nominations for the jounin exam are probably almost over. If you hurry now, you can probably catch Shikamaru between things he has to do."

"Yeah…I guess…" I sighed.

"Chouji, don't have an attitude like that!" Asuma exclaimed, patting me roughly on the back. "Everything will turn out fine! What would your father say if you told him you were contemplating QUITTING being a ninja?"

I had never thought of it that way.

Even though I HAD been contemplating quitting…I had never thought of it was 'quitting'.

Maybe I DID need to talk to Shikamaru.

"Okay, I'm going to go and find Shikamaru!" I said, standing up and getting determined.

"That's it, Chouji!" said Asuma.

"You don't mind that I'm leaving training so early?" I asked, turning around.

Asuma shrugged. "I'd rather you leave one day of training early than quit all together." He replied.

"Okay!" I said. "Thanks!"

Was I building myself up for another let down?

I decided to think positive as I hurried to the Hokage's office. I saw Neji and Tenten pass me, I saw Shino pass me, I saw Lee pass me…but I don't think any of them noticed me.

"Chouji!" I heard Ino call. Had I neglected to notice the one person who would take the time to notice me? "What's up? Where are you running off to?"

"Oh, hey Ino!" I said, turning around. She was holding hands with Sasuke. I was happy for her for finally being the one to 'win' Sasuke.

But I had always thought that Shikamaru had liked her.

Then I remembered that she had entered her name to be nominated for the jounin exam. "Did you get nominated?" I asked,

"No, not this time." She replied with a smile. But then she grinned even wider. "But guess who did?"

I looked at Sasuke first, but he wasn't going to let on whether it was him or not. Besides, Ino knew me too well so she would most certainly know that I didn't really care about whether Sasuke got nominated or not.

Let's see…what was our common median?

"Shikamaru?" I said, wondering why I hadn't thought of it in the first place. He really should have been my first thought.

"Yeah!" she said as she grabbed Sasuke's arm and hugged it with great admiration and pleasure.

Yeah…I was pretty sure that Shikamaru had liked her.

"Sasuke doesn't think he knew it was coming." Ino continued, looking up at Sasuke with the same admiration and pleasure in which she hugged him. Sasuke shrugged nonchalantly in response.

Then again…now that Sasuke likes her too, I don't think there's a single guy that either doesn't like her now or never liked her at all.

Yes, yes, I'll admit I went through a short phase during the academy in which I ACTUALLY felt somewhat attracted to Ino but I got over that quickly. I realized she was way out of my league, and plus, she liked Sasuke way too much to even give any of the other guys in the class a second glance.

Like Shikamaru…

Which reminded me…

"That's funny!" I said in response to the fact that Shikamaru had no idea that he would be nominated even though he was practically in charge with that sort of stuff. "I was just on my way to see him! I'll make sure to congratulate him!"

"Try not to embarrass him!" Ino called after me.

Really, how could I POSSIBLY embarrass Shikamaru?

I hopped up the stairs on my way to see him.

I was about to knock on his office door that had the word, "Nara" written on the front, when I realized it was a crack open.

I know eavesdropping isn't the best thing in the world, but I could hear voices coming from inside and I was curious, especially since Shikamaru never really told me much of anything about his work anymore.

"I still didn't enter my name though." Shikamaru said.

"Oh stop whining, Shikamaru." Came the voice of the Hokage. "You should have seen your face!"

"You could have at least told me beforehand." Shikamaru said.

"That would have taken all the fun out of it." the Hokage laughed.

Oh that Shikamaru! He's so whipped!

"Well, I have some important matters to attend to." The Hokage said after clearing her throat. "You can take the rest of the day off."

"I can't." Shikamaru said. "I'm swamped in Consolidation that you put off to the last second and then dropped on me."

"I've got other things to do!" the Hokage said as she opened the door.

She looked down at me.

"Um…hi!" I said nervously. I was hoping she hadn't thought I had been eavesdropping.

She only nodded her head at me and walked by.

I gave a heavy sigh and peeked my head in the door.

"I thought that was you, Chouji." Shikamaru said.

He had his head down and was writing something at his desk. The room was always such a mess, but they say that's the way geniuses work… and Shikamaru is definitely a genius.

"So you knew I was listening to your conversation?" I said, twiddling my fingers a bit.

"Nope." Shikamaru replied. "You just told me."

I gave a sigh and sat down in the chair that was in Shikamaru's office.

"Shikamaru, you're so smart!" I said.

I didn't know how I was going to lead into my questions about being a ninja.

"So um…you're working on Consolidation?" I said, leaning over slightly so I could see what he was working on.

He did a pretty good job at repositioning himself so he could keep his work private. "Yeah." He said. "For the kids a year older than us. Don't worry, you still have another year."

Well, I suppose that was a good lead as any.

"Shikamaru… I've been thinking a lot lately…" I said hesitantly. "…About Consolidation…"

"Don't worry about it." Shikamaru said. "It's not as bad as everyone makes it out to be. I would think it would be more painful for the teachers than the students."

"How so?" I asked.

"It's a year of training with a couple of kids who think they're all that and a bag of chips." Shikamaru said, folding a piece of paper and dropping it in his desk.

"Yeah…"

"A full year. I mean, you ARE aware of course that they've recently changed the rules so there's no returning home after six months? Just a straight year of training."

"So I've heard…" I admitted. I had hoped it was only rumors.

"Wasn't MY decision." Shikamaru sighed.

"So uh…I heard you got nominated for the special jounin exam!" I said.

"There is no special jounin exam." Shikamaru said, not yet breaking from his work to speak. I couldn't multi-task like that. "There's an ANBU exam. You can become a special jounin just when the Hokage decides you're trustworthy, or you can take the ANBU exam."

"Oh, I know you'll become a special jounin, Shikamaru!" I said.

I knew he wasn't going to take the ANBU exam in a million years.

Finally, he dropped his pen and looked up at me for the first time.

"Chouji, you didn't come here just to make small talk." He said.

That Shikamaru! So smart!

"Yeah…I guess…" I said. "There's no pulling anything over YOUR eyes, Shikamaru!"

I tried to laugh a little bit but he only continued to stare at me.

"Chouji, say whatever you've come here to say because I have a lot to work on." He said. "Consolidation is just in another week and we still don't have a teacher to do it."

My problems suddenly seemed so trivial compared to his. Did I really want to take time out of his important schedule to tell him that I've been having second thoughts about being a ninja?

Well, I had already bothered him this much so there was no sense in leaving now.

"Shikamaru…I've been thinking about my being a ninja."

"Uh huh."

"And…I just don't think it's my thing." I said, and as soon as I did, I felt a heavy weight fall off my back. "You and Ino are both really great ninjas, but I'm staying the same. In fact, I'm getting worse!"

Shikamaru didn't say anything.

He picked up his pen again and started writing, putting his head in his free hand as he wrote.

I guess he was too busy.

I stood up to leave so I wouldn't bother him anymore.

"Chouji."

I stopped at the doorway and turned around.

"Is this about Consolidation next year?" he said.

I nodded slowly and slightly.

"Don't worry about Consolidation." He said. "It's not as bad as everyone says. You'll be with people you know, I can tell you that much."

"Yeah but—"

"I don't think you should quit being a ninja." Shikamaru said flatly. "You've got an advanced bloodline, which means you're automatically a step above everyone else. If Ino and I can become great ninjas without advanced bloodlines then you'll be fine. All you have to do is apply yourself."

Apply myself…

"You're right!" I said. "Shikamaru! You're so smart!"


	50. Uzumaki Naruto: Issue of Consolidation

Uzumaki Naruto; 4 Years Later

Age 16

-Issues of Consolidation-

I woke up as early as I could that morning. Today was the day I was supposed to expect to be called by the Hokage to get promoted to the Chuunin level.

I got dressed and jumped up to the roof so I'd be able to see a ninja coming from a mile away.

I squinted about.

That's when I saw a ninja! Coming right towards me!

I sprung to my feet and waved my arms.

"RIGHT HERE!!!" I yelled so he wouldn't think I was in my house or something.

He landed on the roof, bounded off the ground and then leapt to the next house.

I stood there in shock for a moment, then spun around to see him getting further and further away.

"HEY!!" I yelled. "Get back here!!"

But he didn't listen to me. No one ever really did.

So I sat back on the roof and rocked back and forth, figuring that another ninja would be here at any minute.

That's when I saw that 'other ninja' walking slowly towards my house.

I leaned over the roof and watched.

It was a female ninja.

As she got closer, I realized that it was Tenten; the girl on Lee's team.

She had beaten me in the Chuunin exam tournament.

It was a fluke though.

Apparently not…

She was wearing a chuunin vest.

"Hey Tenten!!" I yelled.

She looked around for the source of the voice that had called out to her and then up.

From where I was, she looked like she had been crying, but when are girls NOT crying?

"Hi Naruto!" she said, waving to me and trying to pretend as though she hadn't been crying even though she so obviously had been.

"Hi!" I said. "Hey, did the Hokage say anything about forgetting to send a ninja to my house? Are you coming by to tell me about it?"

I couldn't really see her facial expression to well, but I was pretty sure she was looking pretty skeptical.

"No…" she said. "The Hokage said I was the only one who passed this year."

"Yeah." I said. "Only one. Except me."

"No…I was the only one."

I hung there and watched her.

What was she going to do now?

What was she going to say?

What was I going to say?

I guess she decided there was nothing more to do or say because she didn't do either. She just walked away without uttering any other words. I was left there on the roof as the wind swept by me like a plan, like it had decided to be ominous at that exact moment.

My head fell and hit the rooftop.

"Ow." I said.

Was I going to have to be Consolidated? No Hokage had ever been Consolidated before. Of course…there had really only been a few Hokages… but still.

No! I couldn't look at it that way! I still had a year left to go until Consolidation! In the next year I had to train harder than ever before! But if I didn't succeed then I'd just become the first Hokage to ever be Consolidated to give hope to future ninjas with the same dream as mine but by some constant twists of fate, ended up on the Consolidation team!!

Oh! It's Sakura!

"SAKURA!!!" I yelled, trying to get her attention. "SAKURA!! OVER HERE!! LOOK!! I'M UP HERE!!!"

I suddenly lost my balance. I was falling! Falling!!!

Thankfully, I landed on my head so I wasn't hurt too bad.

"Oh." Said Sakura. "Hi Naruto." She said.

I looked at her. She looked like she had been crying. No surprise there.

"Hey Sakura, are you all right?" I asked, standing up and brushing myself off.

"Yes…" she said, wiping her tears away but it was pointless since it was obvious she had been crying. It was also obvious that she wanted me to ask her why she had been crying even though she was going to pretend as though she hadn't been.

"What's wrong?" I asked. "Were you crying?"

"No!" she said.

Girls are SO predictable, but especially Sakura.

"Yes you were, Sakura!" I said, trying not to sound insensitive. "Come on, tell me what's wrong!"

She sighed. Girls couldn't hold out on secrets, especially when boys noticed that they had been crying about that secret. "I didn't get promoted to a chuunin…" she said.

"Oh." I said. "Neither did I. But I didn't know that mattered to you so much cause I thought you were kinda… planning on stopping."

"That's why I'm upset!" Sakura said. "I promised myself that if I didn't become a chuunin then I'd stop being a ninja right here and now! And I'm not a chuunin! So I'm going to stop! Obviously that's not what Sasuke's looking for!"

I had always felt that if she was working at something only for someone else then she was doomed to failure anyway. If she had ever decided that she wanted to become a great ninja for the sake of her own feelings then maybe she would have succeeded.

Maybe she should know this.

"Well Sakura…" I started. Then I stopped and reevaluated my thinking. Was it really that great of an idea to say what I thought? I knew Sakura wouldn't want to hear it.

She noticed I sort of trailed off.

I guess anyone would notice.

"'Well Sakura…'?" she led.

"Nothing!" I said with a smile.

Time to sugar coat it without specifics.

"If that's what you want to do, Sakura, you should do it! After all, it's YOUR life and you should lead it the way YOU want to, not the way anyone else wants to!"

She glared at me. Maybe I had been too specific.

"WHAT are you talking about, Naruto?" she said.

Okay…maybe not specific enough…

"Forget about it, Sakura!" I said. "If it makes you feel any better, _I_ didn't pass the chuunin exam either!"

It pained me on the inside to say something like that so openly and freely as if it didn't bother me. But if it was going to make Sakura feel better, I was willing to sacrifice that pain!

"No, it DOESN'T make me feel any better." Sakura said, pointing her nose up in the air and stomping off.

She wasn't going to just walk off like that, especially after I had made that sacrifice for her.

I ran back up to her.

"Hey, let's go get something to eat!" I suggested.

"I can't, Naruto." Said Sakura, not even looking at me. "I have plans today."

"How about tomorrow then?" I asked with a shrug as I got in front of her to make her stop.

She gave me a dirty look with a squint in her eyes and turned around, walking in the other direction.

"No, I'm busy tomorrow too." She said, expecting that to make me go away when it was only going to make me try harder.

"Sakura, come back!" I said, running over and getting in front of her again. I started walking backwards as she continued to walk.

"Naruto, how many times to I have to tell you that you have absolutely no chance of ever getting a date with me?!" she screamed suddenly.

I wanted to point out to her that she was exactly the same way when it came to Sasuke, but the last thing I wanted was for Sakura to get mad at me. Instead, I'd have to woo her.

"Oh Sakura!" I said. "You're so cute even when you're angry!"

I saw the punch coming a mile away, but I let her hit me.

It's not like it hurt or anything, but it's the golden rule that you're always supposed to pretend that it hurts when a girl hits you. That way, she feels bad for you and apologizes and whatever you did to spark her attack suddenly doesn't matter.

"Just get OUT of my face, Naruto." She said. "And STAY out!"

I sat up and frowned at her turned back as she walked away.

Maybe Sakura wasn't as predictable as I had originally thought.

I stood up and brushed myself off…AGAIN.

I certainly fell down a lot.

As I stood there, I finally had some time to reflect about the fact that I didn't pass the chuunin exam.

One more year and it was Consolidation for me…

"Yo."

I spun around to see Kakashi standing there.

"Wow!" I said sarcastically. "That's unlike you to appear out of nowhere like that!"

"I just have a few things to talk to you about." Kakashi said, coming over up and putting an arm around me.

We started walking and he did all the talking.

"As you know…" he began. "There's the little issue of Consolidation…"

"That's all ANYONE talks about." I said, sounding annoyed as I possibly could so Kakashi would know that I didn't need to hear any more. "I know what's going on. But don't worry about it! I'm going to become a chuunin for sure next time!"

"Are you so sure, Naruto?"

"Of course I am!" I said, angry that he doubted me. Maybe if he hadn't paid so much attention to that stupid Sasuke while we were training when we were younger then I would be a jounin…or a chuunin… or even HOKAGE at this point! Yeah, it was all Kakashi's fault and he knew it.

"Have you ever stopped to consider what exactly Consolidation is?" Kakashi asked me.

"Training?" I said. It was obvious. Everyone knew what Consolidation was. It had a simple concept.

"Has it ever occurred to you that I won't be your teacher and Sasuke and Sakura will not be your partners?"

"Wait…why won't you be the teacher?"

Kakashi sighed. "I'm not allowed to be your teacher." He said. "And besides, I'm not qualified to train the Consolidated ninjas. There are only a few teachers who bother meet THOSE qualifications…"

He trailed off.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I said. "You're thinking of a specific ninja. Which one?"

"Nothing, nothing." Kakashi said, waving his hand. "What you need to concentrate on is training so you can pass the Chuunin Exam next time. That way, you won't even have to worry about Consolidation."

"That's what I was GOING to do before you interrupted me!" I said.

"What?" said Kakashi. "You don't want my help? Okay, I understand."

"Wait, no!" I yelled. "You have to help me! You're my teacher!"

"I'll only help you on one condition." Kakashi said. "You have to catch me first."

"You're on!" I agreed.

I understood Kakashi's ways by now. The process of me catching him was his way of helping me. When I was younger, I wouldn't have realized that. But, after training alongside Sakura and Sasuke with their abilities when it came to deductive reasoning, I had adapted a few of their ways and it has made me a better ninja.


	51. Tenten: Critical Encouragement

Tenten; 4 Years Later

Age 17

-Critical Encouragement-

I was called to the Hokage's office! Yes, yes!

I knew I was going to become a chuunin. What luck too! It was my last chance before Consolidation. All the kids my age who didn't pass this genin exam had to go up to the mountains so I was extra happy when I was called down.

Now that I finally had my vest, I could impress Neji. And if this didn't impress him, I didn't know what in the world could.

Maybe I was jumping the gun though…maybe I was called here for some other reason…

Just then, Shikamaru poked his head out the door. "Tenten?" he said.

"Oh, hi Shikamaru!" I said. It's not like I knew him personally, but everyone at least knows who he is.

"Sorry, but I have to make this short." He said. "I've got a hundred other things to do today. Congratulations." He handed me a brand new chuunin vest. It almost glowed as I took it.

"Thanks so much!" I said. "Don't worry about it being short, though! I've got a hundred other things to do today too!"

Like show Neji my new vest!

I went to wave goodbye to Shikamaru, but he had already disappeared back into his office.

I almost laughed to myself as I slipped the vest on to make sure it fit. It did! It was absolutely perfect! Now all I had to do was find Neji!

I casually began walking out of the building when I passed by a room that was filled with people. Chuunins and jounins, to be exact.

Oh!

It was the jounin and ANBU nominations. I saw Neji across the room so I could only assume that's what it was.

I'd just wait for him outside.

I skipped down the stairs and stood outside the door so I'd be sure to catch him before he ran off. I waited around for a reasonable amount of time before people started coming out.

Neji certainly took his time but when he finally did come out, I made sure to catch his attention. "Neji!" I said as I spun around to model my new vest. "Take a look at this!"

He looked me up and down a few times and then continued walking.

"Very nice." He said, but he sounded OH SO sarcastic.

It's just Neji playing hard to get with his critical encouragement.

"Aren't you impressed?" I asked.

Neji went from looking shocked, to disgusted, and then to annoyed. Had I said something that would potentially offend him? That was always a worry of mine when I was around Neji. Though, I don't think I was alone when it came to that fear.

"No," he said.

NO?

"If anything, I'm rather ashamed that you and I were on the same team. It certainly says something about the other female ninjas that graduated the same year as us if our supposed best one is only now being promoted."

A simple, "No," would have sufficed.

"Neji…" I began in protest. Part of me, I guess, had expected him to say something along those lines.

"What's worse, now my time is being wasted." Neji went on.

Now I didn't know what to say. Neji had been my secret crush for years and never once had he ever faltered in my presence or been impressed by a single thing I did.

I stumbled over my words, but the only thing I succeeded in was proving that I was an idiot.

That's when Lee arrived.

"HEY YOU TWO!!!" he yelled, stampeding out of the Hokage's office.

Lee looked happy all the time. I didn't want to make him worry or anything so I quickly smiled. It was hard not to smile. After all, Lee's horribly disfigured face was amusing enough to make anyone laugh.

"Oh, hi Lee!" I said, suddenly feeling really bad that I had just called him horribly disfigured.

"TENTEN!!" screamed Lee so loudly it made me jump. "You have your vest! CONGRATULATIONS!!!"

"Yeah!" I said excitedly, glad that SOMEONE appreciated it. "I'm the only one who passed this time around!"

"Now we're ALL chuunins!" Lee yelled. "YAY!!"

That's so like Lee to always look at things THAT way.

"I won't be a chuunin for long." Neji said.

And…that is so like Neji to always look at things…like that.

"That's right!" Lee said. "Congratulations on being nominated!"

Lee was bouncing around in place. I knew he had come over here for only one piece of information; how did Sakura do? I could tell he didn't want to ask the question because he was supposed to be happy for us for our various achievements but I didn't want him to feel awkward and walk away without getting the information that he wanted.

"Hey Lee, don't you want to know how Sakura did?" I asked him.

"Yeah!" he said immediately.

"Well, when she found out she wasn't promoted, she quit."

"She what?"

Oops. I guess that was a little too blunt.

"Good." Neji said. "One less to have to worry about. I have to leave now."

That Neji…

"But…WHY?" Lee said. I was confused at first, but then I realized that he was still talking about Sakura. "She was an excellent ninja!"

I felt so bad for him. He was completely blind to everything Sakura did and completely deaf to everything Sakura said. As much as I hated to crush his heart, I hated to Sakura crush it even more.

"Lee…open your eyes." I said, grabbing his shoulders so he couldn't just wander away. "She is not what she seems. She's only toying with you because she knows that she can. She never ever EVER has ANY intentions of EVER taking you seriously."

"I'll win her eventually!" said Lee.

"Lee, you should give up now and find a girl who loves you back." I said, even though I knew he'd have to search pretty hard for one of THOSE. "You're seventeen now. I'm sorry if this seems harsh, but you have to grow up."

Lee looked very hurt. I wanted to take my words back.

"What about you, Tenten?" said Lee. "How long are you going to chase Neji for?"

Oooh…Lee…I didn't want my words back anymore. He could have them.

"THAT is different." I said, not really wanting to touch him anymore.

"You're seventeen too, Tenten." Lee said. "You can't chase your girlish dreams forever. But you shouldn't worry…I know you'll find someone who appreciates you."

I felt so betrayed! I should have never told him I liked Neji! Wait… did I even tell him that? Well, I guess I made it pretty obvious…

But how dare he turn the conversation around so it was about me! We were talking about HIM!

He turned around and started walking away.

I was angry with both of my former teammates, but I could talk to Lee any time I wanted. I had to get to Neji _now_.

So I chased after him. As I walked, I could feel little tears streaming down my face but I quickly wiped them away. I suddenly heard my name.

Neji? Where is he?

I looked up. No, not Neji. It was Naruto on his roof. How disappointing.

"Hey Tenten!!" Naruto yelled, waving his arms around.

"Hi Naruto!" I said, waving back.

"Hi!" Naruto said. "Hey, did the Hokage say anything about forgetting to send a ninja to my house? Are you coming by to tell me about it?"

Oh come on, really Naruto. How stupid can you get?

"No…" I said, wanting to put this in the best possible way. "The Hokage said I was the only one who passed this year."

"Yeah." Naruto said. "Only one. Except me."

Had he not heard me?

"No…I was the only one."

He only remained in the same spot and stared at me.

I thought he was going to say something, but he didn't.

I didn't want to seem rude… but Neji was leaving…I was going to lose sight of him.

Naruto only continued to hang there.

I finally gave up on Naruto and chased after Neji.

I think he knew I was following him, though, because he started moving faster. I was so angry with him! He finally stopped and leaned up against a tree, in such a pompous way that suggested he was just going to let me vent.

And VENT was what I was going to do!

"Hyuuga Neji!" I yelled, pointing directly at him.

"What?" he said innocently, but there was nothing innocent about him.

"I just don't understand you!" I yelled. "What you're looking for is a woman who is strong! But look at me! I bent over backwards to become a chuunin for you!"

I think I might have finally cracked. I didn't mean to tell him that.

"Exactly." Neji said. "I have no interest in a woman who's doing something solely to attract the attention of a man."

"What will it take for me to get you to notice me?!" I demanded. I figured I was already losing, so why not just find out?

"You're not a Hyuuga, for one thing, Tenten." Neji said. "I cannot marry outside the clan."

How could Neji be thinking about MARRIAGE?! I thought that was something the GIRLS always did! Besides, it's not like I wanted to MARRY him, I just wanted to show him off to people and maybe…well, you know! I'm seventeen and I'm still a virgin! I didn't want to be a virgin forever!

"I'm not thinking of MARRIAGE!" I confessed. "I just want to—" I quickly caught myself before I added, "lose my virginity". I'm pretty sure that that wouldn't have gone over well with Neji.

That's when I noticed that Sakura had come up out of nowhere. She only stood there and watched, giving Neji new ammo to work with.

"So did Sakura set you up to do this?" Neji asked.

I shook my head.

"I don't believe you." Neji said coldly.

"No…" I said, lowering my voice. I felt a little self-conscious now that Sakura was there. "It was all me. I just thought that maybe if I showed you that female ninjas were…"

"What?" Neji interrupted. "All exactly the same?"

No…were…_not _all exactly the same.

"You're all too caught up in love that you'll never amount to anything." Neji said, not even pausing to let me absorb what he was saying. He just threw rapid fire insults at me that I couldn't take in all at once. "Tenten, you're just barely a chuunin because you've been too busy drooling over me and Sasuke…"

I looked at the ground. Neji was, in part, right. If I hadn't been so concerned about becoming a chuunin just for him then maybe I would have become a chuunin for myself.

Like Ino had.

Ino was an example that all female ninjas should follow.

Then, as if making fun of me wasn't bad enough, Neji turned to Sakura and become insulting her as if she had done anything to him. "And Sakura, you're too caught up trying to look beautiful for Sasuke that you'll probably never even surpass genin rank."

"What?" Sakura said.

"The only female ninja I've seen amount to anything is Ino." Neji said.

He was right.

He was right!

"Ino's twice as obnoxious about being with Sasuke!" Sakura yelled.

Neji sighed.

I could feel tears coming out of my eyes, but I couldn't do anything to stop them. Neji and Sakura just continued to bicker.

"From what I saw, Ino worked hard, became a ninja and impressed Sasuke because of that." Neji said.

I couldn't listen to this any more. I pushed past Sakura and got out of there as fast as I could. Neji wasn't a person I should find security in. I had to find someone else. But who would want someone like me? I'm no good. I'm no good at all.


	52. Hyuuga Hinata: Apologies

Hyuuga Hinata; 4 Years Later

Age 16

-Apologies-

I didn't expect to become a chuunin. But it still made me feel sad when I saw Tenten walk past my window on her way to the Hokage's office. I knew she was going to be promoted.

I gave a heavy sigh and turned away from the window. Looking out it made me feel depressed.

Then again, there weren't many things that DIDN'T make me feel depressed these days. Things had gotten really complicated and I was really falling behind on my ninja training. There one was only a year until Consolidation and that was the last thing I wanted to have to go through. Not only would I not be able to stand the pressure but I didn't want to inevitably hold back all the other ninjas who got consolidated as well.

"Hinata!" came Hanabi's voice from the hallway.

She opened up the door.

"Yes?" I said.

"There's some boy at the door for you." She said.

"Is it Kiba?" I asked.

I don't know why I asked that. Why had Kiba been the first one to pop in my head at that instant?

"You mean your boyfriend?" Hanabi said with a raised eyebrow.

"He's not my boyfriend." I said quietly.

"No, it's not him." Hanabi said. "That other kid from your team."

"Shino's here?" I said, rather confused. Shino hardly ever came over to my house, especially unannounced. But especially ESPECIALLY alone. Hanabi shrugged and left my room.

I got up and went to the front door and, sure enough, Shino was standing there.

"Hi Shino!" I said. "How are you today?"

"Hinata, I just got a call from Kiba's mother." he said without answering my question. "Kiba's in the hospital."

I gasped. "He's…" I began, but I couldn't go any further.

"I figured you'd want to know." He said.

"I'll get my coat!" I said, running back to my room to get my coat.

Why was Kiba in the hospital? What had happened to him? Was he all right? I was so nervous for him. What if something serious had happened and I was here complaining over not being a good ninja while he was suffering or worse, DYING in the hospital?

But I wasn't going to think about that.

I couldn't find my coat anywhere, but I wasn't going to run around madly to search for it when I had to go and make sure that Kiba was all right.

"I'm ready." I said, going back to where Shino was patiently waiting.

We didn't exchange many words as we made our way towards the hospital. I could hardly catch my breath.

I skipped steps as I headed up to where Kiba would be. I kind of lost sight of Shino, but I was anxious to get there.

"Is Inuzuka Kiba here?" I asked the nurse behind the counter as Shino rounded the corner.

The nurse took her time to look through her files and blow a bubble with her gum. She hummed slightly as I drummed my fingers apprehensively in anticipation.

"Inuzuka Kiba you said?" she said finally.

"Yes!" I said. "Is he here?"

"We have an Inuzuka Akamaru here, but no Inuzuka Kiba." She replied.

"Akamaru?" Shino said.

I was thinking the same thing.

"Hey!" came Kiba's voice from down the hall. We both turned around to see Kiba coming over to us.

"Kiba!" I said. "You're all right!"

"Yeah, I'm fine." Kiba replied. "Akamaru's not doing to well though."

"What happened to him?" I asked.

"We were training in the backyard and I think I must have hit him too hard or something cause his leg broke." Kiba said in that tone of voice that clearly admitted that it was an accident.

"That's awful!" I said.

"Yeah well…Akamaru's getting pretty old…" Kiba said, looking down and trailing off.

"I have things to do." Shino said. "Tell Akamaru I said to heal fast."

"Okay Shino!" Kiba said.

Shino then left.

"Can I go and see Akamaru?" I asked.

"Sure!" Kiba replied.

We started walking down the hallway.

I began to think about the way I had felt when I had heard that Kiba was the one in the hospital. I mean, sure. I guess he technically was in the hospital since Akamaru was here but Shino had certainly implied that Kiba was the one who was sick or injured.

I had felt so terrible and so nervous.

Had I ever felt like that before?

"Kiba…" I said.

"Yeah?" Kiba replied.

"I have to admit…" I said.

"Yeah?" he repeated.

I was going to tell him that I had been really worried, but just the thought of it made me blush. The words wouldn't come out right so I just had to say anything that came to mind.

"I thought YOU were the one who was injured." I said dumbly.

"Oh that's all right, Hinata!" laughed Kiba. "But you know me."

I wanted to tell him that that's why I had initially been worried.

But I only nodded in agreement.

Kiba took me inside Akamaru's room. Akamaru was sitting on a little bed and was licking his leg that had wrappings around it. Kiba began to talk to Akamaru and lean on the bed.

It's funny, but something suddenly clicked in my head.

Kiba was no longer the twelve-year-old I had become friends with. Back then he was gauche and awkward… a loud addition to our team that I had difficulty coping with. I had never disliked him, because I try not to dislike anyone, but I had certainly wished that I had been put on a team with another… like Naruto.

Now, as I leaned over the bed and began to pet Akamaru's head, I saw him differently for the first time.

It was about time my girlish instincts to recognize another boy as attractive kicked in.

I found myself turning red.

Kiba looked up, which only made me blush more.

"Hinata, are you all right?" he asked.

"I-I-I…I'm okay." I said. I had never stuttered before when I was talking to Kiba like that. I cleared my throat. "Is Akamaru okay?"

"Yeah, he's fine." Kiba answered. "Just needs a few day's rest, right Akamaru?"

Akamaru barked in response, and I could tell it was the answer that Kiba wanted because he grinned.

I felt myself get goose bumps on my arms and my hair stuck up.

"Kiba…um…" I started, rubbing my arms so they would calm down. "Um… uh… I…"

"Hinata, are you cold?" Kiba asked. He must have noticed that I was rubbing my arms, and also that I didn't have a jacket.

"A little bit…" I admitted.

He looked around the room and then grabbed a black sweatshirt that was hanging over the back of a chair. "Here, you can wear this if you want!" he said, tossing it over to me.

I caught it and breathed out audibly. "…Th…Thank you…" I said, pulling it over my head.

Just then, Kiba's mother came in.

"Oh, what is it NOW?" she said. "If it isn't you, Kiba, it's Akamaru! When will it ever end?"

"Mom!" said Kiba. "Don't say that in front of Akamaru!"

"Say what?" Kiba's mother looked confused. I didn't really know either so I only stood back and listened. Kiba's mother looked like she was going to go on, but the trailed off slowly and looked at me.

With…sort of an accusing glare…

"Uh…hi…" I said nervously.

She came up very close to me and sniffed me.

I felt very uncomfortable.

"Mom, you're making Hinata feel uncomfortable."

How is it that Kiba always seemed to know how I felt?

"Kiba, she smells like YOU all over!" Kiba's mother announced. "Where you two hugging and kissing?"

My face got so hot right there on the spot as Kiba yelled at his mother. It got so hot that I didn't think I needed Kiba's sweatshirt anymore. …Oh right, the sweatshirt. That's probably why I smelled like Kiba.

What was going on with me?

This must have been just another one of my stupid crushes like I had had on Naruto.

Wait…did I just say…?

…That I had a crush on…?

"Kiba…I actually have to go now!" I said quickly. I had a tendency to blush a lot and right now it was impossible to stop it. Kiba called after for me not to go but I couldn't hang around any longer.

Kiba was my friend, so I couldn't have…

'A crush' on him…

As soon as I reached outside, I ran all the way home.

I didn't know why, but I went into my room and suddenly started to cry.

I wasn't sad or upset. The tears just kept coming and I couldn't explain it to anyone. But it's not like anyone needed to know.

I wished I hadn't left. I wished that Kiba was still there. How could all of that have happened in only a single meeting? I saw Kiba all the time so why was that time any different?

I didn't move from that spot for a very long time. I still had Kiba's sweatshirt and although I couldn't smell it like he or his family could, I could still feel it. It did have a distinct feeling to it that made me think of Kiba over and over whenever I tried to clear my head. I wanted to apologize to him…actually, I really just wanted to apologize to anyone. Anyone who came in I felt like I was just going to apologize.

The sound of someone knocking at my bedroom door tested my courage.

"Come in…" I said, trying to wipe away my tears, but any fool would have been able to see that I had been crying.

"Hinata, are you okay?"

It was Kiba.

As soon as I heard his voice, I cried harder.

"Hinata, I'm so sorry!" said Kiba, coming over to where I was sitting. "Did I do something to hurt you?"

I shook my head. I couldn't say anything, I kept choking on my words.

"Hinata…" Kiba said quietly as he wrapped his arms around me and brought me close to him.

Suddenly, I stopped crying.

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I didn't want to move from that spot.

But then he let go and pulled away.

"All better?" he asked.

I nodded.

"What's wrong, anyway?"

Could I tell him? WOULD I tell him? It was impossible. I had never told Naruto how I felt about him.

But this was different. I kept comparing Kiba to Naruto but they were two completely different people and two completely different feelings. I had to tell him. I was going to tell him.

"It's just my father." I said.

"Oh, I see." Kiba said with a nod.

I'd tell him. Just not today.


	53. One Year Later

Intro; 5 Years later

Everyone is pretty sure that he or she is the center of the universe. They all see the same event in a different way. How is everyone growing up? What will their reactions to the new events in the village be?

Sasuke and Ino are a serious pair, and seemingly nothing will separate them, while everywhere else things seem to be falling apart. Lee and Tenten are falling for each other, but under extreme circumstances. Sakura finally comes to a realization and gives up her hope, while Neji mentally attacks Hinata when her teammates aren't around to protect her. Kiba, Naruto and Chouji have all been assigned to a new teacher and have a long challenge ahead of them, while Shikamaru questions whether or not his friendship with Ino is just a friendship. All the while, a visitor arrives at the Aburame household…

The four teams of ninjas that we have come to know and love can't stay sixteen forever. Eventually, everyone grows up.

Will Kiba succeed in his new training?

Will Neji ever let go?

Will Sasuke be able to keep this up?

Will Tenten continue her pursuit of Lee?

Will Naruto prove his word to Sasuke?

Will Shino ever see her again?

Will Hinata ever find happiness?

Will Sakura follow through with her decisions?

Will Shikamaru talk it through with Ino?

Will Chouji regret going along?

Will Lee choose Tenten over Garu?

Will Ino ever be the same?

All these questions, and many more, will be answered. One year at a time.


	54. Inuzuka Kiba: New Comrades

Inuzuka Kiba; 5 Years Later

Age 17

-New Comrades-

A couple of days earlier, I had gotten a letter from the Hokage about Consolidation. I was excited to find out that I knew both people on my team, Chouji and Naruto!

"However, I would also have Akamaru on my team so it's not like I'd be by myself anyway." I said to Akamaru as the two of us walked to where we would be meeting Chouji and Naruto to go and receive our new teacher.

"What…?" Akamaru said.

"You know…" I said slowly. I must have said the first part in my mind or something. "You're going to be on my team so I'll always have someone to talk to and fight with!"

"Yeah, about that…" Akamaru started. I didn't like the sound of that. "As you know, I'm getting old and I can't be fighting with you as much anymore."

"Don't even BOTHER saying that Akamaru!" I said with a laugh. I wasn't going to get ANOTHER ninja dog! That's Akamaru's job.

"I've already talked to your mom about getting another dog and she agreed."

I didn't know what he was saying!

"But Akamaru! What about you?!" I asked him.

I wasn't just going to send him out on a boat! It was me and him to the end!

"I'll still be with you." Said Akamaru. "I just won't fight."

I paused for a second. So I get to hang out with Akamaru…AND get another dog?! I can't lose!

"It's a win/win situation!" I told Akamaru. He nodded at me.

Suddenly, I heard voices and I smelled smells. Naruto and Chouji were approaching.

They must have met up earlier. I turned around to be faced with them as they came towards me.

"Hi guys!" I said.

I guess I was now in a good mood because I was extra cheerful when I greeted them. They both greeted me back and the four of us made our way to the Hokage's office.

Well, I carried Akamaru.

But only because he was whining so much.

When we reached the Hokage's office, I was overcome by an extremely strong smell that burned my nose. I looked around and saw Sakura standing there.

She must have been wearing perfume or something because there is no excuse as to why she smelled like that.

"Hi Sakura!" Naruto said to her.

I didn't listen to their conversation. I was too distracted by the smell.

I could feel my eyes watering.

I hope no one thought I was crying or anything.

Because I wasn't.

It was just because of the perfume.

I noticed that Sakura was looking at me so I pretended not to notice.

I was having kind of a hard time breathing because of the smell and I began coughing a bit.

Just as I thought I was going to pass out, Naruto and Chouji both went inside. I followed after them and I instantly felt better.

"That was harsh." Said Akamaru.

"You can say that again Akamaru!" I told him with a laugh. We climbed up a set a stairs where, at the top, was the door we would go through to meet our new teacher.

I suddenly became really excited.

All I could think about was training in the mountains and running around and getting really strong. I couldn't see Naruto's face but Chouji didn't look toohappy .

"Why so glum, Chouji?" I asked him.

"I guess I'm just nervous." Said Chouji.

"Nervous?" I asked him as we opened the door. Could he be talking about Consolidation? What's there to be nervous about? "Seriously though… training in the mountains is going to be great."

"Imagine the three of us getting on the same team!" said Naruto. He was right! I was really excited too!

"I wonder who our teacher will be." Chouji wondered to himself.

"What are you three doing here?" I heard a voice. I looked up to see Ino and Sasuke standing there. Were they on our team too?

No.

They're CHUUNINS! They don't NEED to do Consolidation!

"We were put on a team and told to come here to meet our teacher." Chouji said as if I didn't already know.

"Ohh…" Ino said. "So it's you three on a team now?"

Chouji and Ino began talking, Naruto and Sasuke began talking so that left me to stand there all by myself. Well, I always had Akamaru of course but it's not like he was saying anything, the jerk.

Suddenly, another door opened up.

"Welcome students of mine!" said that freaky teacher with big eyebrows. "I am your new consolidation teacher. MAITO GAI!"

I can't believe he's my new teacher! He looks so lame! I don't know what to think! Aw man, this wasn't going to be as fun as I had thought it would be. I hope he doesn't disappoint me.

"Five students?" he asked. "I was told that I was to be assigned THREE but if that is the number then so be it!"

Haha…I had made the same mistake. I guess he isn't all THAT bad.

I noticed out of the corner of my eye that Ino and Sasuke were leaving. I didn't mind. It's not like I knew either of them.

Gai then launched into a long explanation about being young and stuff like that.

I didn't listen because I was too busy trying to figure out why Shikamaru's scent was so strong when he wasn't in the room. I mean, it wasn't strong enough for him to be in the room hiding somewhere but it was TOO strong for him to have been in the room and then left.

Suddenly, I noticed Naruto, Chouji and Gai leaving. I have to start paying attention so that I know when to walk with the group.

Gai led us outside and had us all sit on a wooden bench while he stood on a rock.

"Now!" he said. "Introduce yourselves to me and tell me one thing about yourself!"

"I'm Inuzuka Kiba…" I started but then I noticed Naruto was talking at the same time as me.

I shot him a glare.

We need to get it squared away at the beginning that I'm the leader of this group. I see NO leadership potential in Chouji and as for Naruto, he wouldn't make a good leader but he's probably the type to try and steal that position away from REAL leaders like me.

Gai pointed to me.

"You go first because you're on the end." He said.

I turned to Naruto and gave him a satisfying smirk. I AM the leader. Gai already knows it.

I stood up.

"My name is Inuzuka Kiba." I told them all. I then set Akamaru on the ground. "This is Akamaru."

"I remember you." Gai interrupted. I didn't like being interrupted but considering it was his first day, I let it slide.

"As I was saying…" I said with a fake cough. "And someday, I plan to be a great ninja."

Gai nodded and pointed to Naruto. Gai was a lot calmer than I thought…

Naruto then went on to introduce himself and give some big long shpeal about how he's going to become Hokage when he is SO obviously not going to. I've already told him a hundred times.

Gai laughed at Naruto.

"I like your spirit!" he bellowed loudly.

I didn't like him being so loud.

My ears are sensitive.

Chouji was next. He said his name and not much more. I didn't really listen to what else he had to say but I think it had something to do with not being a failure.

But that could just be what I THOUGHT he said.

So Gai talked and talked and talked. We had to explain what we were good at and stupid stuff like that. I mean, it was fun talking about me but it got annoying when I had to listen to Chouji and Naruto talk.

The sun was starting to set when he finally let us go home.

I still love leaping through the trees. I don't think I'll ever get tired of it. It's like a game to me. So I quickly made my way home.

I burst in through the door.

"Mom!" I called. "My new teacher is that eyebrow freak…"

I paused. There was a new scent in the air.

My mom walked out followed by a small puppy.

"Is that my new ninja dog?!" I asked. I was very excited.

"You weren't supposed to tell him Akamaru!" my mom said, crossing her arms.

"Sorry." Akamaru said.

But you could tell he told me on purpose.

"THIS one is going to be a BIG dog!" my mother said. "No offense, Akamaru."

"None taken." Said Akamaru.

"But mom, how am I supposed to carry him around or put him in my hood if he's a big dog?" I asked.

My mom only rolled her eyes.

I don't know why. I was asking a perfectly logical question. I had always liked carrying Akamaru around and it was easy because he was always so little.

But I could remember when I was younger my mother had REALLY wanted me to get a big dog and was kind of disappointed when I had picked out Akamaru, so it was no surprise that now that it was HER turn to pick the dog, she picked one that would get big.

I wasn't going to hold that against my new ninja dog, though!

I picked up the new dog. I didn't know what to name him but I knew I was going to have to train him REALLY hard if I wanted to become a chuunin by the time I got back.

I mean, I had trained Akamaru really hard but THIS one I would have to train even HARDER!

Maybe it would be an advantage if I had a bigger dog. That way, when I performed some of my jutsus, there would be more power with all the strength and weight behind him.

Maybe I should take him training now.

I wanted to show my new dog to my new team!

I wish I had gotten him BEFORE the introductions because then I'd be cool and have TWO dogs.

I wanted to show him to someone!

Hinata likes dogs! She's always petting and holding Akamaru! I decided to go and show Hinata. Maybe she could help me name him!

Then I paused.

Or name…

…Her.


	55. Hyuuga Neji: Conspiracy

Hyuuga Neji; 5 Years Later

Age 18

-Conspiracy-

Today was definitely not a good day.

You would have to be living underneath a rock to not know that Uchiha Sasuke had been promoted to a jounin.

Everything he does or says is practically the news of the town, though it really doesn't need to be.

However, after waiting a couple of days to hear about my most definite promotion, I was utterly shocked to have received no word.

Had the news come when I was not home? Had they simply forgotten my name?

No. I was not promoted. For the second year in a row.

The jounin exam was easy the first time around and even easier the second time. I masterfully showed off my skills and even won the tournament this year. There wasn't a doubt in my mind about my potentially jounin rank.

So why wasn't I going to pick up my vest today?

Why didn't I get to strut around flaunting the vest I SO deserve?

I can tell you one thing.

If Lee gets a vest before me, there will be blood.

I was now in a royally bad mood and I felt the only way to alleviate that was to spread my misery to other people.

And who better to spread my suffering to than the Main House?

After all, they are the cause of most of it so if I am to cause them some slight unhappiness every now and then, I felt I have done my part as a bitter Branch House member.

Whose father was killed…

BY THE MAIN HOUSE.

At this point, I didn't care who I stumbled across as long as they were in the Main House.

But someone must have been trying to make up for the years of horribleness in my life because the first person I managed to find was Hinata.

It's not that I ENJOYED picking on Hinata, it's just that it gives me a sort of pleasure.

Okay…I enjoy it.

But lately, it's gotten too easy to the point in which it doesn't feel satisfying anymore.

Okay…so it IS satisfying…

It's not like I like making her cry…

Okay…I do…

But it's so easy so that takes the fun out of it…

Okay…so maybe it doesn't…maybe it makes it even MORE fun…

She was walking toward me down a hallway. I could tell that she was trying not to make eye contact because her eyes shifted from side to side.

I stood up as straight as I could so, even though I was much taller than she was, there would be no mistaken who was bigger, stronger, better and more powerful.

My challenge was getting her to say something to me so I could interpret it wrongly and get offended about it.

So when we got close and she showed no signs of greeting me or needing to tell me anything, I coughed loudly.

She jumped, unsurprisingly enough. I bet her father beats her or something.

"Ah!" she yelped pathetically. "G-g-good morning…" she said, bowing to me slightly and continuing on her way.

She wouldn't have greeted me if I hadn't brought it to her attention. That is SO like the Main House to think they're too good for a member of the Branch House to even so much as say hi to.

Yeah…that sounded good.

"That is SO like the Main House to think they're too good for a member of the Branch House to even so much as say hi to." I said quietly.

It was too quiet for her to hear but loud enough for her to basically know what I was saying.

"I did greet you…" she said.

"I had to practically force it out of you." I told her.

"I was going to say it anyway…" she lied.

"No you weren't." I told her. "I'm not as gullible as you Main House members might think the Branch House is."

The more I speak to members of the Main House, the more I realize how much they look down upon us members of the Branch House. Just thinking about it makes me want to collect up a bunch of rocks and pelt them all in the back of the head when they're not paying attention.

Petty?

Maybe.

But I have my reasons.

"I don't think that at all!" she said timidly.

What other things could I drive home? "And you don't seem to recognize that we are on the same level."

"What?" she asked.

"Why don't you look at me when we're talking?" I asked. I knew the answer.

It was because she knew that I was more powerful than her even though she's in the Main House and I'm in the Branch House.

It just goes to show that the houses are just names and don't mean anything.

"I just…" started Hinata. I knew she didn't have an excuse or anything to say so I figured I'd put her out of her misery.

"Do I disgust you Hinata?" I asked her. I knew the answer but I wanted to ask it anyway.

"N-n-no!" she said.

LIES!!!

"Don't lie to me!" I told her. I don't know why I have to be her second father.

"I wasn't!" she said. I could tell she was going to cry soon. Once she started crying, my job would be done.

"I can tell by the way you don't look at me that you can't give me a straight answer." I said. I made that up on the spot. But it sounded about right. "And the way you stumble with your fingers, it tells me that you think you're better than I am!"

Hinata just gasped. I guess I had hit the nail on the head. It wasn't hard to do. She was perfectly predictable.

Suddenly, her father walked out.

Even though I'm not afraid of him, I wasn't about to pick on his daughter ruthlessly while he was there.

We exchanged glares while he walked away but eventually, my glare burned a big enough hole in him that he looked away.

I had won.

He continued on his way, once again leaving Hinata and I alone.

"Tell your father that I'm not scared of him." I told Hinata.

"I don't think he's…"

"Tell him." I interrupted. Feeling in control gave me satisfaction.

"N-n-now?" she asked me, not able to talk.

"Yes." I said.

She stuttered, whimpered and then turned around and ran. I had never sparked such a reaction out of her that she actually sprinted away from me without at least thinking up an excuse. Perhaps I commanded even more control than I had originally thought.

I hadn't made her cry this time, but I guess there's no point in doing it every time when I can do whenever I am feeling angry.

That had made me feel slightly better, putting Hinata into her place. But I was still angry about not being a jounin.

Maybe I should go to the Hokage's office and ask about it. Or find Sasuke and do to him what I did to Hinata.

Though, I don't think he'd react quite in the same way. Though if I ever got him act that way, I would be able to die happy.

I decided that I would go have a one on one chat with the Hokage. Maybe I could talk her into thinking about how awesome I actually was at the exam.

If all else fails, I could try getting her to act like Hinata and scare her into giving it to me.

So I exited the Hyuuga complex, glaring one last time at the Main House before I departed. I wouldn't feel complete unless the Main House knew the extent of my hatred toward them.

Though, it's not like the Main House would EVER know the extent of my hatred.

My loath and despise towards them and their ways is on an immeasurable scale.

I made my way to the Hokage's office and knocked on the door.

I knocked quite vigorously and no one came to answer the door so I figured that maybe she was out.

Now my mood that had been lifted by my Hinata conversation was now back down to what it had been before.

I had walked all the way here for no reason and I was still a chuunin when I deserved to be a jounin.

I decided to glare. I tend to glare every once and again. In my glaring, I noticed Ino and Sasuke standing there doing nothing.

They were both wearing jounin vests.

INO was a jounin?

I had seen her and while she was good, her skills where nothing compared to mine and she definitely didn't deserve a vest over ME.

I would have to talk to her about that. Maybe she got my vest by accident. I definitely out-performed her.

In fact, I think it was I who bumped her out of the tournament.

Come to think of it…it WAS.

Why was the system of promotion so flawed? Who exactly was in charge of deciding who would get promoted? Was this person BLIND or just incredible impaired when it came to making judgment calls?

Something was going on.

Something bigger than me.

And that frustrated me to no end. To think, once again I was completely out of control of my own destiny. I had thought I had finally grabbed the reins on this whole problem with fate.

I'd never be able to get out of this place.

I went back to the Hyuuga complex and sat in the back yard.

I thought a lot that day.

But no amount of thinking was going to get me promoted.

If no one was going to come and tell me I was to be promoted, all I could do was participate in the next jounin exam and once again show everyone that I deserved to be a jounin. I would perform so excellently that they wouldn't be able to turn me down.

I looked up to see my uncle standing there, watching me. It's not like I was doing anything. I wasn't going to entertain him.

"Neji, stop hurting Hinata." He said.

"I never touched her." I said.

"You don't need to touch her." My uncle said. "You know she's not a strong girl. But you have to accept your destiny. That's what your father did."

How dare he bring up my father.

"Neji, I don't want to ever have to punish you." He said. "But if you hurt Hinata again then I will have to."

He turned his back to me.

So pompous…bastard…

Today was definitely not a good day.


	56. Uchiha Sasuke: My Final Decision

Uchiha Sasuke; 5 Years Later

Age 17

-My Final Decision-

Ino and I had taken the jounin exam together and succeeded in the jounin exam together.

We had done a lot together.

I wish I had known that Ino's companionship could be this reassuring years ago when I really did need her.

I stood outside the Shikamaru's office right next to her. We were the only people waiting outside the room so I could only assume that she and I had been the only ones to pass the exam. I don't know why the Hokage bothered to pretend as though it wasn't obvious that we had passed by trying to keep us in suspense, but I suppose there's always that voice in the back of my head that's telling me that she wants to see me about SOMETHING ELSE and will simply pretend as though the jounin exam wasn't even on her radar.

Even though it was.

I looked down at Ino. She was pleating her shirt in her fingers.

I reached down and took one of her hands to keep her from doing so. But maybe it was just for reassurance. She seemed nervous, but there was nothing to be nervous about.

I wanted to say something to her, but I couldn't find any words, so I kept eye contact out of the question by pretending to be interested in something across the room.

The door to the Shikamaru's office opened. Ino grabbed my hand and squeezed it hard. Obviously she wasn't aware of her own strength because it did hurt, but I was far too preoccupied with Shikamaru who had just emerged from his office. In his hands was a bag that clearly contained two vests.

"Hey Shikamaru!" Ino said cheerfully. I didn't say anything, I just wanted him to give me my vest.

"I have to make this quick." Shikamaru said, pulling to vests out of the bag and handing us each one. "Congratulations. The both of you have been promoted to the chuunin rank."

CHUUNIN?

_CHUUNIN?_

I am no _CHUUNIN._

"Chuunin?" I questioned his sanity.

"Jounin." Said Shikamaru as if it was something he could mess up and just act as though it meant absolutely nothing when it was a few years of my life. Sure, he might have easily been able to juggle the two titles whenever he wished, but some of us had to work hard to attain them. "Sorry I can't stay."

Shikamaru left, but I didn't mind myself with him anymore. I immediately put the vest on.

It was a little big…

"It looks great!" Ino said as she put hers on and spun around. I didn't know whether she was talking about her own vest or mine, but either way I guess she was right. "I knew you'd get yours."

"Yeah, I was pretty confident about it." I agreed as I found the means of tightening the vest.

"You know this means we have to go on harder missions." Ino said. Of course we would.

I noticed she was having a bit of trouble reaching the strap like I had, so I spun her around to do it for her. She seemed giddy in her own skin now that she had a new vest on, even though they looked remarkably similar to our old ones.

I let go of her when I was done and she turned around and kissed me.

I was going to kiss her back, but she started talking instead.

"Should we celebrate?" She said, twiddling with the hair on the back of my neck, a particularly ticklish part of my body.

"Probably." I said. She didn't look like she was going to say anything more, so that was my opportunity to make up for that lost chance of returning her kiss, but suddenly the door swung open.

"Seriously though…training in the mountains is going to be great." Came Kiba's voice. I let go of Ino and turned around to see Kiba, Naruto and Chouji making no attempt to respect our moment.

"Imagine the three of us getting on the same team!" Naruto announced.

"I wonder who our teacher will be." Wondered Chouji.

"What are you three doing here?" Ino asked Chouji.

"Consolidation." Chouji replied. "We were put on a team and told to come here to meet our teacher."

Consolidation? Oh right. That's where they put all the failure ninjas.

"Naruto, I knew you'd end up on the Consolidation team."

"What's that supposed to mean, Sasuke?!" Naruto demanded. Obviously he had convinced himself that Consolidation wasn't anything to be ashamed of when, in fact, it was the most shameful aspect of being a bad ninja.

"That always seems to be your retort when you have nothing better to say." I said, making sure he got a good look at my jounin vest.

I could tell he saw it because his eyes flickered with a hint of jealousy.

"Just you wait, Sasuke!" he said. "Once I get back from training in the mountains, I'll show you what I'm made out of!"

"Naruto, you just have a few token moves but if you don't know how to use them correctly then you can't hope to succeed in a battle." I said.

Before Naruto could reply, the door to Shikamaru's office swung open and the teacher I recognized as Gai was standing there. "Welcome students of mine!" he exclaimed. "I am your new consolidation teacher. MAITO GAI!"

He posed and waited for us all to be in awe, but I certainly wasn't.

"Five students?" he asked questioningly. "I was told that I was to be assigned THREE but if that is the number then so be it!"

Wasn't it apparent to him that I was of the JOUNIN level?

"Time to go now." Ino said, grabbing my hand and giving it a tug. I followed after her and caught one last look at Naruto, Chouji and Kiba talking with Gai. That was the last I was going to see of them for an entire year.

"I'm kind of glad I was able to become a chuunin before Consolidation!" Ino said.

I guess it hadn't processed to her yet, but we were _JOUNINS_.

"Jounin." I corrected her.

"I know that, Sasuke." She said as she playfully gave me a shove.

I didn't know if she was taking me seriously. "I worked hard for this vest." I said, grabbing a hold of the collar. "I want it to be acknowledged."

"I know." Ino smiled.

If I had a jounin vest, the next time I met Itachi he would take me much more seriously than that day when I was only twelve years old and had nothing to show off.

"Can't kill Itachi as a chuunin…"

I bit my lip slightly and quickly withdrew from the rest of that comment. I tried not to talk about Itachi around Ino because she was so patient, I didn't want to have to burden her. Itachi had caused ENOUGH grief to the world.

"So…" Ino began, taking my hand.

Oh right, celebration! What were we to do?

"Sasuke!!" came a voice behind me. A suddenly got a blast from the past as I turned around to see Sakura there. I certainly didn't see much of her these days, ever since she quit being a ninja.

"Sakura…" I said, feeling slightly uncomfortable around her. After all, I knew she still loved me, and here I was with her former best friend.

"I heard the good news!" she said, stopping in front of us even though I think we ALL would have been a lot better off if she had left. "You can let go of him now, Ino."

"I don't want to." Ino said, getting closer to me.

I tried not to look like it bothered me, but that was a rude comment on Sakura's part.

"I say we go out and celebrate you becoming a jounin." Said Sakura. "As a team of course. Just for old time's sake."

I thought of the fact that Naruto was about to head off into the mountains for Consolidation. Therefore, we could not have a 'team' party. "Naruto's busy." I said.

"He is?" Sakura said, absentmindedly twirling her hair around her finger. "Then I guess it'll just have to be you and me!"

She smirked.

"Sakura, I'M going out with Sasuke to celebrate." Ino said.

"That is SO like you Ino." Sakura said. "Wanting to steal Sasuke all to yourself."

This sure was getting annoying…

"We're celebrating TOGETHER because we were BOTH promoted." Ino argued.

"I've never heard of someone work SO hard to get a guy." Sakura went on. "You trained to become a jounin just so that you could win Sasuke's heart?"

I looked at Ino, and she seemed to simultaneously look at me.

"Sakura…" Ino said. "You know that's not true…"

"Do I?" Sakura said, grabbing my hand. "Come on, Sasuke. Let's go…"

I easily pulled my hand from hers.

"Sasuke…?" she asked, slowly.

It may have been true that Ino tried to win me by working hard as a ninja.

But…

It had worked.

"Sakura, I want you to leave me alone." I said to her, trying to make the blow soft, but meaningful.

"What, you want to celebrate with HER first?" Sakura said. Obviously it was too soft for her.

"I don't want to celebrate with you at all." I said in a final tone. I couldn't have been any more clear with her. I had Ino and the fact that she came over here and tried to belittle her while I was right here just had disgusted me. It was the last straw. Sakura had to know her place.

Sakura looked at me with a betrayed expression, as if she was the victim around here. But Ino was the victim, having done nothing to provoke this sort of treatment from Sakura. And I never heard a single word of disparage come from Ino about Sakura, so I think it's about time Sakura returned the favor.

Her eyes welded with tears.

I was hardened to a girl's tears.

I held Ino's hand as Sakura left. I wanted to prove to Ino that there wasn't an ounce of me that cared for Sakura's love.

Ino watched Sakura leave with intent.

They had been friends when they were younger, but Sakura had easily handed over that friendship for something that had seemed important at the time.

Me.

Now what was Sakura left with?

I wanted to say something to Ino. She looked sad. I don't think Ino could ever really turn away from Sakura. Something inside of her still wanted to protect the crying girl who had needed her help so many years ago.

So I only stood there next to her with my hand cupped in hers.

Had I done the right thing?

What was Ino thinking?

Her sad expression slowly transformed into a smile.

I knew everything would turn out all right. I could see it in her smile.


	57. Tenten: My Ongoing Pursuit

**Okay. I think, once again, we need to have a word to the wise: If you don't like the story, stop reading it. If you're willing to give constructive critism then go for it and we don't mind, but if you're reading this for the sole purpose of finding things you don't like just so you can rant about it, then just stop. We can accept the fact that people think some of the characters are OOC, but take a look. Yeah. It's five years later. But whatever! Do what you want! Keep reviewing like that if you really have nothing better to do, but you're really just wasting your own time. With that said, enjoy the chapter.**

Tenten; 5 Years Later

Age 18

-My Ongoing Pursuit-

Lee had invited the team over for dinner tonight.

We were all going to go until Lee started calling it a 'Tea Party' and that's when Neji decided that that was the night he had other things to do.

So, because I felt bad for Lee, I ended up accepting.

I had been over Lee's house for dinner many times before. He usually invited the whole team over after long training sessions.

I would show up in my ninja garb, not even bothering to shower or change.

However, I had never gone by myself before.

I stood in front of the mirror in my room modeling a skirt and a little black shirt.

I was pretty happy with how my body looked lately.

I was shaped just the way I always wanted to be.

I then paused briefly from my modeling.

Why was I dressing up? It was just Lee.

I decided to disregard that thought and leave it at the fact that I was dressing up for myself for the sake of dressing up.

I left my house and walked casually over to Lee's house.

I was kind of glad that Neji wasn't going to be there.

Or Gai for that matter.

Not that I needed to be alone with Lee or anything, it'll just be a new atmosphere.

I reached his house quickly. He lives rather close to me so it wasn't a long walk. I rang the doorbell and within ten seconds, he was standing there wearing a hideous green tuxedo with white polka dots.

"Tenten!" he said as if he hadn't been expecting me. "Welcome!"

He gestured me inside and into the kitchen where there were two TV dinners sitting on the table.

I laughed to myself.

It was kind of cute.

"Do you want pizza or chicken nuggets?" he asked me pointing to the two.

I couldn't keep my laughter to myself anymore at that point, I giggled out loud.

"It doesn't matter to me!" I told me, covering my mouth.

"Good, because I was the pizza." He said, sitting down at the one with pizza. "It comes with a brownie."

I sat down at the TV dinner with the chicken nuggets. Now I kind of wish I had gone for the pizza.

Lee's company was always more enjoyable than Neji's. While Neji was MUCH more of a looker than Lee was, I have recently come to the conclusion that Neji is, and will always be, a bastard.

"Tenten, you look very pretty tonight." Lee said, completely out of nowhere.

I found myself blushing madly.

"No I don't…" I said, looking away from him. "You're just saying that."

Lee gave me a dopey smile and then picked up his pizza to eat it.

I frowned slightly. He probably only complimented me the way a child would compliment someone else.

With nothing attached.

It's not that I think Lee is a big child, it's just that he has a girlfriend already and the two of us are just friends.

Watching Lee eat his pizza then reminded me that he IS just a big child.

I paused.

Why did LEE, of all people have a girlfriend and no one else did?

Out of all twelve of us that used to hang out a lot, only Sasuke and Ino hooked up.

I didn't even know about anyone else dating anyone outside of our circle much less each other.

"Lee…" I started.

I had a question in my mind and it wouldn't go away unless I asked him.

Lee looked up. He had a bit of sauce on the side of his cheek. Sauce mixed with his already ridiculous looking face made for a pretty funny sight.

I took my hand and gestured on my own face for him to wipe his own.

Lee looked at me with a confused expression.

"You have some sauce on your face." I confirmed.

"Where?" Lee asked, pointing to his forehead.

"Not there!" I said, laughing at his stupidity.

I picked up my napkin and reached over the table. "Right…" I began wiping the sauce slowly from his cheek. I looked at his face and for some reason, it made me smile.

Not because of how childish he looked…but because I felt happy.

"Here…" I finished.

Lee reached up and grabbed my hand lightly and brought it down slowly.

"Tenten…" he said.

I saw a hint of sadness in his eyes so I pulled back, feeling slightly embarrassed.

If I had ever come that close to touching Neji's face, he probably would have smacked my hand away and scolded me for turning something like eating into flirting.

Flirting?

Had we been flirting?

No, Lee had a girlfriend. No flirting with Lee.

We continued eating in silence from there. I kept looking up at him, not really knowing what to say.

But he didn't look like he wanted to talk to me anyway. I had made him feel too uncomfortable.

Dinner ended and Lee picked up both trays and threw them in the trash can.

We still hadn't said anything to each other yet.

"I guess I'll go home now." I said now that dinner was over.

"You don't have to go now." He said to me.

I could tell he was sad. But probably only because he didn't have anyone to talk to talk to anymore. Even though…I didn't think he WANTED to talk to me.

Lee's a very social person and needs a person around in order to be happy… very unlike Neji.

I felt like I needed to say something to him. But I didn't know what.

Why was it so hard to talk to Lee?

LEE?! Of all people!

"Lee, I'm sorry." I said, not over my embarrassment. I knew he had a girlfriend and the unwritten law of being a woman is to not date a married man or a man with a girlfriend.

"Why are you sorry?" he asked me, looking confused. I laughed at his face. Lee doesn't even have to be making a funny face for it to be humorous.

"All right, I'll stay." I told him.

"Great cause I've got ice cream!" he said excitedly as he ran into the kitchen. I followed after him to see that he had taken a carton of chocolate ice cream out of the freezer. "Chocolate's all right? You like chocolate, right?"

Who doesn't?

I nodded at him as he got out some bowls and begun scooping them out.

When he was done, he handed my bowl to me and we both went back to the kitchen table.

This time, rather than sitting across from him, I sat in the seat next to him. I really shouldn't like Lee this much…

Crap…liking Lee. Not a good sign in terms of judgment.

I quickly got up and moved back to the other side of the table.

Lee had a girlfriend anyway.

I distracted my mind with some ice cream, eating it rapidly. At this point, I think I wanted to get out of Lee's house.

Now I was confusing myself.

Did I want to leave or did I want to stay?

I looked over at Lee who, unsurprisingly enough, was covered in chocolate ice cream on his face.

He was eighteen years old? Couldn't he eat like a normal person?

He looked over at me.

"I know I have some on my face." He said. "I figure that if I wipe it off now, more will just get on."

"Why don't you eat it more calmly?" I asked him.

"And risk letting it all melt before I can eat it?" he practically demanded as he shoveled more into his mouth.

I laughed at that. Only LEE would say that.

I didn't really feel like ice cream.

Actually, that's a lie. I did.

But as I said earlier, my body was JUST the way I liked it and I didn't want to ruin it by eating ice cream.

So I waited for Lee to finish and then I stood up.

"I think that I should go now." I told him.

"How come?" he asked, sounding sad.

I shrugged. I didn't really have an answer to that. I guess I just felt uncomfortable being there. And feeling the way I did about him. Kind of like how I had felt for Neji… but something MORE.

Especially if he had a girlfriend. Lee, I mean. Not Neji. Hell will freeze over before Neji gets a girlfriend, I've decided.

He hastily wiped his face off and stood up. Of course, he missed practically ALL of it.

"Sorry you didn't want to stay longer…" he said sadly as he walked over and gave me a hug.

I felt all giddy inside when he hugged me. I know it was just a friendly hug but I could still like it.

I pulled away, still holding him in my arms.

"I wanted to stay…" I said. I couldn't explain to him that I wanted to leave before I decided I liked him more than I did at the moment.

"Then why don't you?" he asked. "My parents aren't home. You're welcome to stay as long as you want."

I looked into his ridiculous eyes that were crowned by those hideous eyebrows. His awful hair…his disgusting style…the ice cream was practically the icing on the cake.

I decided…that I liked those.

"Lee…" I said, not knowing where to go from there.

"Yeah?" he asked. I didn't know what to say. He looked at me, confused expression and all.

I fell in love with that face right then and there.

I couldn't hold myself back any longer. I stood up on my toes, reached both of my hands up, on each side of his face, cupping his cheeks in my hands. Then I pulled him down and kissed him on the lips.

As the kiss continued, I didn't feel him pulling away but more so, joining in.

Lee was a surprisingly good kisser.

I fell back onto my heels and looked at him. I can't believe I had just done that.

He has a girlfriend.

"I'm sorry Lee."

I looked down at the floor.

He put his hand under my chin and brought it up so I was looking in his eyes again. He was going to scold me for kissing him when I knew he had a girlfriend.

But…instead…he just _smiled_.

"YOU have something on your face now."


	58. Uzumaki Naruto: Fish

Uzumaki Naruto; 5 Years Later

Age 17

-My Fish-

Since I had failed in the Chuunin exam, I had been sort of fearing the whole idea of Consolidation. But now that the day had come when I would meet my new teacher and teammates, I couldn't help but feel sort of…

Excited.

I knew Chouji and Kiba were both still genins, so the question was if they were going to go through with Consolidation or if they were going to chicken out. Hinata had quit being a ninja only a week before the Chuunin exam took place so she definitely wasn't going to come…

Yeah, it'd probably be just me, Chouji and Kiba.

I started to wonder who my new teacher would be.

Hopefully someone who's punctual….

…Unlike a certain teacher I know…

I wondered who was going to watch after my fish while I was away for a year.

If you hadn't already gathered that I had bought a fish, then I'll tell you. I had gotten a fish.

I peeked in his tank as he swam around. I named him Ikeuo and fed and took care of him every day. My whole life had begun to revolve around my fish when I wasn't training.

I grabbed some of his fish food and sprinkled it in the tank, watching as he went to the surface to take some bites of it.

I had to find someone to take care of my fish while I was away on the Consolidation mission…

I guess it wasn't really one of my top priorities right now. I still had a week or so to find someone to take care of my fish so I shouldn't worry about.

What I SHOULD worry about was that if I didn't hurry, I would definitely be late.

I was putting on my jacket as I left my house in a rush.

I didn't very far when I suddenly saw Chouji walking by himself.

"HEY CHOUJI!" I yelled, running up to him.

He turned around and waved.

"Hi Naruto!" he said. "Are you going to the Hokage's office for Consolidation?"

"Yeah!" I said, trying to be optimistic because I knew Chouji wasn't too thrilled about the whole thing. I could see why, too, because both his teammates were so much better than he was. "Are you too?"

Chouji nodded. "I thought it over long and hard last night." Chouji explained. "And I decided that I'm going to do it! And if it doesn't work out, I can at least say I tried!"

"Good!" I said, not really knowing how else to respond. I wasn't much of a motivational speaker so I only nodded and agreed most of the time. "Let's get to the Hokage's office since we're going to be late if we don't go now." Chouji nodded again and the two of us quickened our pace.

"Hi guys!" I heard a voice in front of us. I looked off in the distance to see Kiba standing there with Akamaru. How he possibly knew it was us from so far away is beyond me, but Kiba's kind of weird that way.

We exchanged pleasantries and quickly established that Kiba was also on his way to the Hokage's office for Consolidation and if we didn't ALL hurry then we'd ALL be late.

Kiba argued with his dog on the way there, but that wasn't anything different.

He's a little crazy. I doubt he can ACTUALLY speak to his dog.

I smelled the heavenly scent of Sakura's best perfume as we got closer and closer to the Hokage's office.

She had come to say hi to me and wish me luck with meeting my new Consolidation teacher!

I KNEW she'd come around!

"Hi Sakura!" I called out, seeing that she looked even more beautiful than she ever had today!

"Naruto, don't you have someplace to be?" Sakura said.

I was so excited.

She knew I was there for Consolidation!

But I wasn't going to let on how excited I was and that I had cleverly deducted why she was there. After all, Sakura's a pretty shy girl and if I said outright that I knew she had come to wish me luck then I knew that she'd get embarrassed.

"Yeah!" I said to her. "I'm getting my consolidation teacher today! Do you know anything about Consolidation? All we ninjas that are still genin get assigned a new teacher and go off into the mountains for a whole year! A WHOLE YEAR, Sakura! Can you believe it? I bet you're going to miss me after I've been gone a whole year. You'll be pretty sad that you only have that stupid Sasuke to look at until I get back for the next Chuunin exam. Speaking of the Chuunin exam, I know it's pretty far away but I'm automatically entered in it because I'm on the Consolidation team and I'm WONDERING if you want to come and watch me fight in the tournament since I know I'll get that far after all that training I'm going to do in the mountains for a whole year—"

"Whatever Naruto." Sakura interrupted.

I was going to take that as a yes whether it was or not!

I waved to her as me, Chouji and Kiba went inside the office to meet with our new teacher.

That certainly went well.

I could tell Sakura was upset that I wasn't going to be here for a whole year.

Maybe SHE'D want to watch my fish…

"You can say that again Akamaru!" Kiba laughed loudly and out of nowhere in response to nothing. He is completely crazy.

None of us said anything about Kiba's random outburst. And I think we were ALL uncomfortable with the silence so it was just a matter of who would think of something to say first.

"Why so glum, Chouji?" Kiba got to it.

"I guess I'm just nervous." Chouji replied.

"Nervous?" Kiba said as he opened the door. "Seriously though… training in the mountains is going to be great."

"Imagine the three of us getting on the same team!" I added.

"I wonder who our teacher will be." Chouji wondered.

"What are you three doing here?" I heard a voice.

I looked up to see Ino and Sasuke there.

In Jounin vests.

"We were put on a team and told to come here to meet our teacher." Chouji explained.

"Ohh…" Ino said. "So it's you three on a team now?"

I wasn't going to start an argument with Sasuke but he totally came up to me and provoked me.

"Naruto, I knew you'd end up on the Consolidation team."

"What's that supposed to mean, Sasuke?!" I demanded. I had done NOTHING to spark that at all. Literally! And I'm not even being biased to myself because I'm awesome and Sasuke's stupid! He literally did that for no reason!

"That always seems to be your retort when you have nothing better to say." Sasuke said, tugging at his vest. I wanted that vest.

"Just you wait, Sasuke!" I declared. "Once I get back from training in the mountains, I'll show you what I'm made out of!"

"Naruto, you just have a few token moves but if you don't know how to use them correctly then you can't hope to succeed in a battle." Sasuke said. He had probably been rehearsing these lines just in case he saw me because Sasuke is SO that way.

"Welcome students of mine!" came a voice from the office. "I am your new consolidation teacher. MAITO GAI!"

IT'S GAI!!! I WAS IN SHOCK!! WHAT ARE THE ODDS?!?!

"Five students?" he asked. "I was told that I was to be assigned THREE but if that is the number then so be it!"

Sasuke decided to leave at that point because he knew I knew his terrible secret that he couldn't think up comebacks on the spot.

"This mission in the mountains will be a test of your youth on a new Consolidation team!" Gai announced. "It will be hard and awkward at first, but you will slowly become accustomed to it! Mind you, it will ALWAYS be a difficult journey but as long as you have an overqualified, enthusiastic and youthful teacher like myself then no harm shall ever come to you!! Now, follow me off into the sunset!!"

I looked at the other two. Chouji had a raised eyebrow and Kiba couldn't have a more blank look on his face. So I shrugged and followed Gai out of the building. He instructed us to sit down as he stood high and mighty up on a rock.

"Now!" he said. "Introduce yourselves to me and tell me one thing about yourself!"

Well, he was doing the same thing as Kakashi!

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto!" I announced but then I looked over at Kiba who had also begun to introduce himself. Whatever, I'd wait until he was done. Everyone knows that the leader goes last anyway.

Gai pointed to Kiba.

"You go first because you're on the end." He said.

Kiba smirked at me. Why? I have no idea.

"My name is Inuzuka Kiba." He said, standing up. "This is Akamaru."

"I remember you." Gai interrupted.

"As I was saying…" Kiba said with a cough. "And someday, I plan to be a great ninja."

Gai nodded and pointed to me.

I stood up and grabbed my forehead protector. "I am Uzumaki Naruto!" I announced. "Someday, I'll be the Hokage! I'm going to work hard on this Consolidation team and show everyone that even if you're on the Consolidation team, you can still be a great ninja and Hokage!!"

Gai laughed.

"I like your spirit!" he said, and then he turned to Chouji. "And you?"

"I'm Akimichi Chouji." Chouji said. "And I'm going to work hard to become a good ninja just like my former teammates, Shikamaru and Ino!"

Gai then began to talk. I was invigorated by his announcements for a little while, but then he started to repeat himself over and over and over. I sort of lost track of what he was saying as his words went in one ear and out the other. I got so lost that I thought I was going to fall asleep.

"With that being said," he announced finally, which perked me up. "As the sun sets, travel back to your homes! I will see you youths on the day we depart from the village!! What a glorious day that will be!! You are dismissed!!"

Gai left.

Kiba shrugged and was the next to leave.

Chouji looked at me and then left.

I was alone.

With only a few thoughts.

Was this Consolidation thing going to work?

What was I going to miss for the year I was gone?

But most importantly…did I feed my fish this morning?


	59. Aburame Shino: She Hates People

Aburame Shino; 5 Years Later

Age 17

-She Hates People-

"Shino."

I spun around to see my father standing there.

"There's no sense in standing by the window. The ninja is not coming."

I wanted to deny that I had been standing by the window awaiting the arrival of a ninja telling me that I had passed the jounin exam that I had taken a little while ago, but I do not lie to my father.

"I was just making sure he was not running late." I said, and that was the truth.

I thought I had done well in the jounin exam. I guess I had thought wrong. Now I had officially failed two jounin exams. My father had become a jounin when he was only seventeen, like I am right now, so I was lagging in ability as far as our ranks were concerned.

"We have other matters to attend to as of now." My father said. "We have to get the house ready for guests."

I think something about what he had just said confused me.

That combination of letters formed words…

And that combination of words formed a sentence…

And normally, everything my father said made sense.

But he had just said that we were supposed to get the house ready for guests.

This could only mean that someone important was coming to our house. Like the Hokage.

"Is the Hokage coming?" I asked.

"No." he answered.

"Who is then?" I asked.

"An acquaintance of mine from my childhood."

I was still confused. He had yet to make any sense.

"Why?"

"Because we haven't seen each other since our genin years." My father responded. "I became a chuunin at fourteen but she stayed a genin. We lost touch and she recently called and wants to get together."

Was I stupid for not understanding?

"Her name is Kokyuu." My father said. "And she has a daughter that I believe is six years old named Tsuma. So I want you to behave and be nice to both of them."

What was he EXPECTING me to do?

He probably aimed to confuse me so much that I would be unable to react or question his motives.

"Now, I have to warn you about Kokyuu…" he started but then he was interrupted.

By a knock at the door.

"That's probably her." My father said as he leaned over and opened the door since we had been, after all, standing right there.

"GESO!!" I heard a shriek that made me almost stumble over. Then a woman came leaping into the house and wrapped her arms around my father, but he didn't react. "You haven't changed at all! You look the same!"

What was Geso?

Oh right. My father's first name.

I was distracted by the fact that this strange and enthusiastic woman was now looking at me.

"Oh, this must be your son you told me about…Shino?" she said.

"Yes." I said.

"He looks just like you!" the woman said as she grabbed on to me and gave me a hug.

She was more affectionate than Kiba.

"This is Kokyuu." My father said to me even though it was quite easy to gather all this from her entrance.

"Hi there!" said Kokyuu. "Well, now that I've met your son, I want you to meet my daughter! Come on in here, Tsuma!"

That's when a girl stepped in.

I had been misinformed when I was told that she as six years old. She looked more my age, maybe a year younger, so I looked at my father who, unsurprisingly enough, didn't react.

Six_teen_, Father. Not six.

"This is Tsuma…" Kokyuu said as she adjusted her daughter's collar.

Tsuma didn't look too thrilled about being here. She had a miserable frown on her face and her arms were crossed.

"Shino, say hi to Tsuma." My father instructed.

"Hi." I said.

But she didn't answer.

Instead, her eyes narrowed.

…Which caught me off guard, I must admit…

"Oh, don't mind Tsuma." Said Kokyuu. "She's just a little shy."

"Indeed." I said, pushing my sunglasses further up on my nose.

"Shino, give Tsuma a tour of our home." He said.

"Very well." I obeyed. I began to walk around the corner and turned around to see that Tsuma was not following me.

"Tsuma, go with Shino!" Kokyuu insisted.

Tsuma only frowned more as she followed after me.

I took her to the first room and sat down.

She stood in the doorway.

"I'm not giving you a tour." I told her straight out.

"I didn't want a tour." Tsuma said. "Especially from you. I hate you."

Now, while I didn't really care about Tsuma's opinion of me, I was a taken aback at this sudden statement. I knew a lot of people disliked the Aburames just because of what we were, but never had anyone just said straight out that they hated me.

I felt myself getting all boiled up on the inside.

The chakra bugs were also unhappy with the statement.

I wasn't going to do anything, but then I was.

Then I wasn't.

I had to say something.

"You hate me?" I said finally, at a complete loss of what else I could possibly say.

"Yes." Tsuma answered. "But don't take it personally. Because I hate everyone. I hate people."

"You hate people?" I repeated.

She nodded and sat down in another seat.

I thought about what she said.

How can someone just _hate people_?

I disliked the company of other people, but I didn't hate people in general.

"You hate people?" I found myself saying again.

"Yes." she said. "All people. Any people. No matter who it is or what they are, I just HATE them."

Quite the outburst she had.

"I suppose you have your reasoning for hating people." I said.

Her head whipped around to face me.

"What did you say?" she said.

"I suppose you have your reasoning for hating people."

She didn't respond to that for a little while.

"So you don't care that I hate people?" she said.

"Why should I care?"

"Because that means I hate you too."

"Well, I've never really cared whether people like me or hate me. While you hate people, I'm just indifferent about people. I feel like hating people takes too much energy. But if you want to hate people, who am I to try and stop you?"

That was the most I had ever said at one time.

"No one has ever said that before." Tsuma said. "Everyone always tells me that I shouldn't hate people."

"I don't care if you hate people."

She eyed me suspiciously, as if she expected me to suddenly jump up and take all my words back and tell her she was wrong for hating people.

Little did she know, I would never suddenly jump up.

And I most certainly didn't care that she hated people. I have dealt with plenty of people in my lifetime who have unconditionally hated people. Mind you, not ALL people, just a certain kind of people. Tsuma was a rare case because she hated all people.

It was then that my father appeared in the doorway. Kokyuu was standing next to him with a big… smile… on her face.

There weren't a lot of smiles in the Aburame house.

"Shino, I've decided that I want you to take Kokyuu on a tour of our home as well." He said.

"I would love to see your home!" said Kokyuu to my father but he had already ducked away and hid in the shadows. He had a place in the house that was completely secret that not even I knew where to find him, so I hardly expected Kokyuu, with her limited ninja abilities, to be able to find him.

"Very well." I said, standing up. "I'll take you on a tour of our home."

"Come on, Tsuma!" said Kokyuu.

I led Kokyuu and Tsuma around the house, making brief introductions to each room.

"Shino, you seem like such a lovely young man." Said Kokyuu. "How old are you now? Eighteen? Nineteen?"

"Seventeen." I corrected her.

"Wow!" she said. "You look so much older than that!"

No I didn't.

"And you must be six and half feet tall!" Kokyuu continued as if I wanted to make conversation with her.

"Six foot two." I said.

"Wow!" said Kokyuu. "Really? You look a lot taller."

…No I didn't.

"And are you a jounin too?" she asked.

"Chuunin." I said.

"Well—" she began.

"No, I'm just a Chuunin." I interrupted her before she could tell me that I looked like a jounin.

"Well, that's nothing to be ashamed of!" said Kokyuu. "Tsuma is a chuunin too! I'm surprised you two haven't seen much of each other on missions!"

"I had a mission with Shino once." Tsuma said.

"You did?" said Kokyuu, looking happy.

She did?

"About a year ago." Tsuma said. "But he didn't say much then. He still doesn't say very much. Which is too bad, because his voice is really sexy."

Oh sure, go talking about me as if I'm not there.

Wait.

What?

"What?" said Kokyuu before I could.

"Nothing." Sighed Tsuma. "I hate him and I hate you."

Kokyuu rolled her eyes. "Thank you so much for the tour, Shino!" she said as she went to hug me but I quickly stepped away from her. "Oh, you're just like your father. It took him FOREVER to warm up to me! But that's okay. I don't expect you to warm up to me that fast."

I don't 'warm up'.

"Now…where did your father run off to?" Kokyuu asked.

"I don't know." I said.

"Well, I'm sure you don't mind if I look around for him." Said Kokyuu. "I used to be so good at finding him whenever he went and hid! Tsuma, you can stay here with Shino."

She frolicked off. She would never find him.

I looked at Tsuma who was glaring at me.

Tsuma…what a very, very, very strange girl.


	60. Hyuuga Hinata: Shadows

Hyuuga Hinata; 5 Years Later

Age 17

-Shadows-

Weeks earlier, Kurenai told Kiba and I that she was entering us in the Chuunin exam. I accepted it at the time…

As the Chuunin exam drew closer, I found myself only becoming more and more afraid. Even though I had entered plenty of chuunin exams in my life, I suddenly felt helpless and fear was the only emotion I could muster during training.

My father told me it was time to stop being a ninja.

I could see it in my eyes that I was not fit to take on the Hyuuga house.

So I quit.

In the very same week, Hanabi became a genin.

Father was so happy for her. I was too, but I could only be reminded of all the hardships I had to endure. I knew they would not be as hard for her because she was so gifted compared to me. Then again, it didn't take much to be gifted compared to me.

I watched Kiba in the exam.

My biggest regret of not being a ninja anymore was that I wouldn't be able to see Kiba as much anymore.

Especially since he didn't do very well in the exam and was now leaving for Consolidation. Well, he wouldn't be leaving for another week or so, but it still felt very close.

I didn't want him to leave before I told him what I truly felt.

And, even though I was alone there in my room, the thought of my feelings for Kiba made me blush.

On the other hand, I couldn't tell him how I felt. We had a strong friendship and if I told him something like that, I might jeopardize our friendship. He might feel weird around me afterwards and not talk to me as freely anymore. And his freeness was always made me like him so much.

I had been silent for a year, so I could be silent for another year until he got back. Perhaps by then, I will have gotten over him.

Could I, though?

"Hinata!!" I heard Hanabi call me.

I don't know why I bother to have a door to my room because no one ever knocks anyway…

"Yes?" I said.

"Guess what?" she said. She had her forehead protector tied on her head.

"What?" I asked, glancing over at where mine lay on my bookshelf.

She looked over at what I was looking at, but then got puzzled. She shook it off and turned back to me. "I got my first kiss today!"

First kiss? What?

"You're only twelve." I said.

"So?" said Hanabi, getting defensive. "I'm old and mature enough! So now I have a boyfriend!"

"Oh…" I said. "I'm so happy for you…"

She smiled and nodded, closing the door behind her.

It wasn't that my sister's happiness made me sad…it was just that… well… Hanabi was living the life that I wished I had.

Maybe quitting my ninja life was a mistake. I had to speak to my father. There was still time to meet with the Hokage and ask her to put me on the Consolidation team…with Kiba…

I stood up and left my room.

I looked down the long hallway to see Neji walking towards me. I'm sure he was just making his way to another part of the house that was past my room, but I lowered my head and walked. I wished I had waited two more minutes before emerging from my room, but I didn't want to go back in now because it would look like I'm avoiding him.

He stood up taller and looked down at me. He was much bigger and much stronger than I…not to mention a much better ninja. In fact, he was probably the best Hyuuga ninja right now. Even more powerful than my father.

I didn't want to make it look like I was questioning his obvious dominance as I kept my head sunk low. I watched his massive shadow dance across the wall, completely overtaking my own. I was so intimidated by him that he didn't even have to do anything to make me shiver like a scared puppy. Maybe I wouldn't make a good ninja after all. But that much should have been apparent.

He suddenly coughed.

"Ah!" I said, jumping slightly. He surprised me. It had been completely silent, like a horror movie. And now we were standing virtually right next to each other, him towering over me.

I kept my head low though.

In fact, I lowered it even more in a slight bow, hoping not to offend him. My father told me not to do this because he was apart of the Branch House while I was part of the Main House, but it was an instinctual action for me because he was such a presence. "G-g-good morning…" I said quietly, trying not to stutter.

He didn't even bother looking at me.

I was about to keep walking, hoping he was satisfied.

"That is SO like the Main House to think they're too good for a member of the Branch House to even so much as say hi to." He mumbled.

I HAD offended him.

Unintentionally, but Neji has ever reason to be upset with the Main House… but especially my father…

"I did greet you…" I said, trying not to sound controversial.

"I had to practically force it out of you." He said, his voice elevating more as he spoke.

"I was going to say it anyway…" I tried to convince him. But he was already in that mode where he was sure he had heard what he had heard.

"No you weren't." Neji insisted. If he had a little more faith in the family, I doubt he would be quite as unhappy as he is. "I'm not as gullible as you Main House members might think the Branch House is."

Now was not the time to wonder where Neji had gotten the assumption that the members of the Main House believed that members of the Branch House were stupid and gullible. I knew there was nothing I could do to defend myself or assure him that what he thought was not right. Because if I did something like that, he'd only accuse me of thinking he was ignorant just because he was part of the Branch House.

"I don't think that at all!" I said, trying to be convincing but also not too forceful. But who was I kidding? Nothing I said could ever have any force. Especially on someone like Neji.

"And you don't seem to recognize that we are on the same level."

I didn't believe we're on the same level. I believed he was on a higher level than I was. He was stronger than I was in more ways than one.

My eyes darted back and forth from him to his shadow, which only seemed to be growing. It wasn't my imagination though…the sun was coming out from behind the clouds and he was blocking the light.

"What?" I said to him, feeling like I was shrinking smaller and smaller, only getting more helpless than I was, if such a thing was possible.

"Why don't you look at me when we're talking?" he said.

It was painful to look at him, let alone right into his eyes, like he wanted me to. Most people think that all we Hyuuga have the same eyes, but I look into Neji's eyes and see unconditional hatred towards everyone and anybody… even if someone had done nothing to him, he just couldn't stand that there were other people in the world that were happier than he was.

And it didn't take much to be happier than Neji.

His bitterness had overtaken him like the shadow on the wall.

"I just…" I began, but I didn't know how to finish my sentence. It was a bad move on my part to begin something I couldn't finish.

"Do I disgust you Hinata?" he said.

This was a lose-lose situation. If I said no, he'd tell me I was lying. If I said yes, he'd get offended.

But he didn't disgust me.

On the other hand, I felt sorry for him. I felt sorry that he put himself through all this when he could be looking at everything in another light.

"N-n-no!" I tried. I was begging for forgiveness… for no crime I ever even thought of committing.

"Don't lie to me!" Neji scolded me.

I could feel myself getting flustered. Part of me was upset with how I was being treated, but most of me just wanted to tell Neji that he had to stop doing this to himself.

"I wasn't!" I said.

"I can tell by the way you don't look at me that you can't give me a straight answer. And the way you stumble with your fingers, it tells me that you think you're better than I am!"

I let out a gasp and dropped my hands by my side.

But it wasn't true!

It wasn't true…

Just when I thought the tears would come out, I heard my father enter the hallway. He looked at Neji briefly and then began to walk by us.

He walked in between the both of us. Neji's shadow shrank as the sun disappeared behind the clouds. Neji and my father were the same size, but Neji was much stronger.

My father turned his head away from Neji as he walked into a room at the end of the hallway. I could tell he was disappointed. In what? Me? Neji? Both of us? I could never tell.

"Tell your father that I'm not scared of him."

I looked at Neji. Then back at the door as it closed. I turned to Neji. "I don't think he's…" I began.

"Tell him." He interrupted.

"N-n-now?" my voice hardly came out. I was so afraid of him, I felt like I was being cornered.

"Yes." He said.

I don't know how I did it, but I turned my back to him and ran.

I sprinted as fast as I could to the end of the hallway and opened the door, shutting it behind me.

"Hinata, what have I told you about knocking?" my father said.

That's when the tears came out. "Father…" I whispered, going over to him. My father and I didn't normally hug very often, but he took me into his arms and patted my head.

"I know." He said. "And I'm sorry. I should have done something. I'll have a talk with Neji."

I knew that would only make things worse instead of solving them.

"It's not his fault." I confessed. It wasn't my fault either. It was no one's fault.

"Hinata, don't worry, all this will pass." My father said.

"Father…can't I be a ninja again?" I asked. Under normal circumstances, I don't think I would ever undermine my father's decision. Though, it's not like he had been the one who decided I had to quit, he only advised me to do so.

"You can do whatever you like, Hinata." He said. "But I don't think you understand anything. Anything at all."

I did understand, though. I understood everything.

I understood that nothing was being done about anything to solve the problems that were only growing more prevalent in the Hyuuga house, at the center being my cousin, Neji. He clearly surpassed all the other members of the Main House, yet we were going to place Hanabi in charge once she got old enough.

Somehow, that didn't seem right to me.

Maybe I didn't understand anything after all.


	61. Haruno Sakura: No Love

Haruno Sakura; 5 Years Later

Age 17

-No Love-

One could say that there has never been a match more perfect than that of Sasuke and I.

We went together like bread and butter, peanut butter and jelly, and oreos and milk!

So of course, one could look at the 'relationship' that Ino and Sasuke have and know that it's only a front. Ino is just so desperate for Sasuke and Sasuke THINKS that Ino's making him happy.

But she's not.

He just needs to realize that I'm the only one for him and then everyone will be happier.

Except Ino.

But she deserves it.

Anyway, in other news that also had everything to do with Sasuke and what he was doing with his life since I keep a very detailed profile of his days, I had heard through the grapevine that Sasuke was being promoted to the jounin rank today.

I figured that it would be a great idea for a date if I met him outside the Hokage's office and we both went out to celebrate.

I just had to make sure I was the first one to catch him because he's still the most popular boy around.

Which is why he's perfect for me.

I didn't have to dress up nicely for him because lately, everyday I've been dressing up.

Why look your best for just one day when you can look great every day of the year?

Also, now that I'm not a ninja anymore, I have plenty of time to go out and make myself look better. And as a plus, I don't look dirty, have cuts or have a boy's haircut like Ino.

However, I put on some nice perfume just for Sasuke in case things got a little intimate.

I modeled my perfectly pink outfit in front of my mirror. I felt like a movie star all the time and it made me feel great. I bet Ino couldn't say that when she looked in the mirror. I bet she felt like an ugly, dirty boy.

Of course, not all boys are ugly and dirty. There's always Sasuke who's far from ugly and dirty! Well, he's dirty sometimes, but never ugly. However, when he's dirty… it's rugged.

I made my way over to the Hokage's office and stood outside the door. It'd be perfect.

I had it all planned out in my mind. I would ask him if he wanted to celebrate as a team and he'd HAVE to say yes to that. But, considering Naruto's got plans of his own today concerning Consolidation, the 'team' would consist of me and Sasuke.

Alone.

I must have been waiting outside for at least twenty-five minutes but it felt like hours.

I kept rehearsing what I was going to say to Sasuke in my mind so that I wouldn't accidentally stumble when I looked into his gorgeous eyes.

Suddenly, Naruto, Kiba and Chouji approached the door.

"Hi Sakura!" Naruto said to me in his regular annoying voice. He just doesn't get it, does he?

"Naruto, don't you have someplace to be?" I asked him, trying to get him to go away just in case Sasuke came out.

"Yeah!" said Naruto as he looked like he was going to wet himself. "I'm getting my consolidation teacher today!"

As if that's anything to be proud of.

Chouji looked away rudely. Just because I wasn't talking to him, doesn't mean he can't pay attention to me.

He must have a crush on me or something.

I couldn't help but notice Kiba was frowning. Had I said something offensive? I don't think so.

But I don't care what Kiba thinks. Though, I have noticed that he IS kind of cute lately...

He began coughing lightly and making a scrunched up face. Even that was kind of cute.

But not as cute as Sasuke.

It was then that I realized that Naruto was still talking to me.

"Whatever Naruto." I said. He might have said more after that but at the point, I stopped listening and the three of them went inside.

After a bit more waiting, my prayers were finally answered! Sasuke came out!!

With Ino…

"Sasuke!!" I said in my cutest voice.

"Sakura…" he said in his melodic voice.

I think he was being wistful.

He definitely loves me!

"I heard the good news!" I said to start the conversation up. I wish Ino would just leave. She's making things kind of awkward.

Then I looked down to see that she was clutching his hand.

Probably just to make me jealous.

Probably against Sasuke's will too.

I couldn't have that.

"You can let go of him now, Ino." I instructed her.

"I don't want to." She replied in a snippy voice.

Why is she so unreasonable? I'm surprised she has ANY friends! At least her hair is longer now though. It reaches to at least her shoulders but I think she still keeps cutting it.

EVERYONE knows Sasuke likes long hair better. Which is why mine reaches all the way down my back.

Just for him.

Then I remembered my plan that I had rehearsed.

"I say we go out and celebrate you becoming a jounin." I said cleverly. "As a team of course. Just for old time's sake."

"Naruto's busy." He replied. He was playing RIGHT into my trap. It was only a matter of time now before I had him.

"He is?" I said, pretending to be confused. I couldn't help but smile about that. "Then I guess it'll just have to be you and me!"

I looked at Ino, telling her without words that if I steal her 'boyfriend', it's not my fault that I'm so perfect for him.

"Sakura, I'M going out with Sasuke to celebrate." She said. How selfish of her! I JUST asked Sasuke and now she's trying to steal him when I had said it first!

"That is SO like you Ino." I informed her. She might want to be aware of this fault. "Wanting to steal Sasuke all to yourself."

"We're celebrating TOGETHER because we were BOTH promoted." She pointed out.

Did that make her better than me? Just because she became a jounin and practically dedicated her life to winning Sasuke? How pathetic.

"I've never heard of someone work SO hard to get a guy." I said. It was true. "You trained to become a jounin just so that you could win Sasuke's heart?"

Sasuke and Ino both simultaneously looked at each other. I think Sasuke just realized how pitiable Ino was.

"Sakura…" she said, looking as though I just pointed out her most terrible secret. Which I had. "You know that's not true…"

"Do I?" I asked, feeling as though I had sufficiently won and embarrassed her enough. I reached my hand out to grab Sasuke's strong hand. "Come on, Sasuke. Let's go…"

I suddenly felt his hand pull out of mine. Had he not been ready to go yet?

"Sasuke…?" I asked him as I turned around. Then what followed was probably the worst thing I had ever heard in my life.

"Sakura, I want you to leave me alone." He said.

Those words stabbed into me like spears.

Maybe he just meant for right now.

Maybe Ino asked him first so he wanted to celebrate with her and THEN with me.

Saving the best for last, I bet.

"What, you want to celebrate with HER first?" I said, pointing to Ino. I couldn't even look at her at this point.

"I don't want to celebrate with you at all." Sasuke said.

I felt as though my heart had just been ripped out of my body and stomped on.

I wanted to say something, but I couldn't get the words out.

My mouth wouldn't speak so I had to get out of there. At least until I could gather myself. I turned and walked away, leaving Sasuke and the tramp by themselves.

My walk picked up to a jog as I felt the tears running freely down my cheeks.

Then my jog turned into a run and my tears turned into full out crying.

I couldn't believe it.

He had to be brainwashed! He doesn't love her! He can't! He's supposed to love me!

Where's my fairy tale ending?

I reached my house and pushed the door open. I didn't stop running until I had reached my bed and thrown myself upon it, sobbing into my pillow.

I sat up slowly. There was make-up all over my pillow because of my crying.

Then I looked at myself in the mirror across the room. I couldn't stand looking at myself anymore. My make-up had smeared across my face so I looked like a hideous monster!

Obviously I wasn't good enough! Sasuke only likes manly girls who wear pants!

I grabbed onto the dress I was wearing and ripped a big part of it off.

I tore off my expensive shoes and threw one of them at my mirror, shattering it.

Why did Sasuke like Ino with her short hair? It was shorter than HIS at some point!

I clutched my long pink hair in my hand.

The hair that Sasuke is SUPPOSED to love.

I couldn't stand the fact that I had it anymore. I ran over to my dresser, searching desperately for a pair of scissors.

I found one in the bottom drawer and pulled them out. They were pink, like everything else I own.

I held them up to my soft hair that I worked so hard to maintain and with a harsh jab, I began ripping into it.

I didn't know how short I was cutting it at this point but I didn't care. I kept cutting until the locks in my hand were separated from my head.

I stumbled over to my window, opened it and threw the mass of pink out the window.

I found myself screaming out the window.

I don't even know who or what I was screaming at or what I was even saying but it didn't matter.

I fell slowly to my knees and continued crying.

Nothing made sense anymore.

Am I always going to be this unhappy?


	62. Nara Shikamaru: Less Desirable

Nara Shikamaru; 5 Years Later

Age 17

-Less Desirable-

I looked down at my current list of things to do left by the Hokage.

Working with the Hokage has its ups and its downs. It doesn't require much physical activity on my part and most of my time is spent making myself look busier than I actually am.

On the other hand, sometimes I have to do some things that I am less than enthusiastic about doing.

I looked at the list.

One of the less desirable ones I've gotten recently.

Brief meeting with Gai to discuss his future consolidation group. As long as I keep it short, it shouldn't be too excruciating. The group is supposed to show up a little afterwards.

I feel sorry for them.

Next, I had to hand out vests to new jounins and chuunins. I looked to the side of my desk to see a bag containing no more than two jounin vests and no chuunin vests.

That'll be brief.

The last thing was probably the most troublesome thing on the list. With a group of two other jounins, I was required to do gate duty.

Gate duty is by far the most troublesome thing in the entire world. It consists of standing guard at a gate. And because there are two other jounins at my post, there will be no sleeping, slacking or watching the clouds. I'm not even allowed to sit down.

I think the Hokage just likes to see me do these things. Maybe my reaction gives her some sort of pleasure. Maybe it's because I do them. But she's the Hokage, I suppose.

I didn't get much time to myself before my door was swung open enthusiastically by a certain green spandex wearing someone.

"I'm ready for my students!" sang Gai as he struck a pose in my doorway. Just for me.

"There are just a few things I have to go over with you before they arrive." I told him as I picked up a sheet of paper. "You will be getting three students…" I read. "All of which are males seventeen years of age."

"Awww!!" he yelled, probably ignoring me. "The passion of youth!"

"Yes…" I said, just wanting to finish. "As you know, you were assigned to the Yamakawa region so I assume you did your research."

"Any area would be no challenge for me!" Gai continued.

I handed him a packet of information that he was required to read as I sat back in my desk.

It would take him a while to read that whole thing considering he reads it all.

I glanced over at the bag of vests by my side. Maybe the new jounin were already here. I could get that over with.

I picked up the bag and walked out into the waiting room.

"Hey Shikamaru!" I heard a voice call before I had even entered the room. I looked up to see Ino and Sasuke standing there, holding hands.

I closed to door behind me to give Gai his privacy and I waved to the two in front of me.

I didn't have much time to stand around talking to them because Gai's students would be showing up soon. I also didn't want to hang around if they were going to be all over each other. Not that I'm exactly worried about Sasuke doing it but Ino's very affectionate.

Also…I don't know why but it just makes me feel uncomfortable seeing them together.

"I have to make this quick." I said as I pulled the vests out of the bag. "Congratulations. The both of you have been promoted to the chuunin rank."

"Chuunin?" I heard Sasuke correct me. Whatever. As long as HE knows he's a jounin, I don't think Ino or I are going to say anything about it.

"Jounin." I corrected. Hopefully, he was satisfied with that because I had to go and I wasn't about to stand around begging for his mercy. "Sorry I can't stay."

I went back into my office without receiving so much as a goodbye and sat back down at my desk. Gai was still reading so I didn't bother him.

I guess it bothered me more than it should have that Ino didn't say goodbye to me. I mean, we were on the same team. Very briefly, I admit but we still worked together a lot and went through a lot together.

I cursed myself for not trying to get to know Ino better while I still had the chance but it's not like I could date her or anything because she was dating Sasuke.

But it's not like I WANTED to date her either.

She was too hung up on Sasuke back then. She still is but I guess he reciprocates her feelings now.

Gai suddenly perked up, walked over the door and opened it up, bellowing loudly as he did so.

"Welcome students of mine!" he said standing in the doorway. "I am your new consolidation teacher. MAITO GAI!"

I walked over the door and closed it behind him. Ino was still out there as were Chouji, Naruto and Kiba. I guess they were his new students.

Poor Chouji.

I looked down at my list. The only thing left is gate duty.

Maybe I'll just wait in my office for a little while and not show up for a while. Pretend as though maybe my two extremely short tasks took longer than three seconds each.

I listened to Gai enthusiastically greeting his students and then I heard him lead them outside for introductions.

You know someone talks too loud when you can understand every word they say through a closed door.

I sat in my office doing nothing for a while.

I have a very high tolerance for boredom so it's not like someone could have told me that I might as well be doing my job because I was perfectly content sitting at my desk looking out my window.

I could see Ino, Sasuke and Sakura outside talking right outside my window.

I couldn't hear what they were saying but any idiot could figure out what it was about.

And I was no idiot so I not only could figure out what was going on but I could most likely predict the outcome.

I don't see how someone like Ino becomes friends with someone like Sakura.

Maybe Sakura was different when they were younger but last I checked, when someone sticks up for you when everyone else is making fun of you, you're not supposed to go out of your way to be obnoxious and mean to that person.

At least Chouji didn't act that way to me.

Girls are different. Girls are troublesome.

My door suddenly opened again and two ninjas walked in. I knew them from previous gate duties as Kotetsu and Izumo.

"Ready for gate duty, Shikamaru?" the one with hair in front of his eye asked me.

I groaned, but not loudly. They probably heard me but…who cares? I then stood up and the three of us made our way out my office and outside.

Much to my luck, our post was really far away so it gave me plenty of time to just have to myself.

The moment we got outside, Chouji called to me.

"Shikamaru, guess what!" he yelled while waving his arms around. "Shikamaru!! Hey! Shikamaru!"

I looked up at him to acknowledge that I was paying attention to him.

"Remember Gai?" he asked. I nodded painfully. "Well, he's my teacher now!"

I already knew this.

"Really Chouji?" I asked to humor him. "Good luck."

"Thanks Shikamaru!" he said as he ran off to rejoin his new team. Had I been in his situation, I would have quit being a ninja right then and there.

I continued trailing behind the other two as we made our way to our post.

They were talking about some pretty unimportant things that didn't concern or interest me and every now and then they would ask my opinion but it's not like they actually cared so if I just shrugged at them and gave them a perplexed look, they were satisfied enough.

Maybe now that Ino's a jounin, she'll have to do gate duty too. Maybe at some point, we'll be paired up. Then we could catch up on old times and get to know each other better.

But she's dating Sasuke.

But it's not like I actually want to date her anyway.

But it would be nice to do gate duty with her. Then again, we're usually in teams of three so Sasuke would probably be there too. Definitely be feeling third wheel syndrome there.

Maybe I wouldn't though.

We were on the same team a few years ago and maybe she had a crush on me.

Wait…no. She only had eyes for Sasuke back then. I shrugged to myself and sighed.

She only has eyes for Sasuke now.

I wonder if Chouji ever had a crush on Ino. I can imagine the poor guy's never had a girlfriend in his life before.

I haven't either but I can see myself potentially getting one. Chouji might have a harder time.

"Shikamaru!" I heard my name being called. I looked up to see Kotetsu and Izumo straying off the path. "Try to stay behind us on our way to our post."

"Are we going to a different one today?" I asked, unsure of why we weren't just following the path as usual.

"It's shorter to just cut through here." Izumo explained.

But I WANTED to take the long route there.

"Can I just take the regular way and meet you guys there?" I asked.

"There needs to be three people at each post at all times." Said Kotetsu. "We can't relieve the ones in front of us until we're all here."

I sighed and went off the path as well.

So troublesome…

I found myself randomly thinking of Ino doing gate duty with me. I don't know why.

Maybe it's because I just saw her so she's fresh in my memory.

However, Ino's dating Sasuke.

And I just want to get to know her better. I don't want to date her.

Or do I?

How troublesome…


	63. Akimichi Chouji: Sheer Determination

Akimichi Chouji; 5 Years Later

Age 17

-Sheer Determination-

Last night, I had made a list of reasons to join the Consolidation team.

I had also made a list of reasons to not join the Consolidation team.

And, even though both lists had turned out to be virtually even in length and importance to me, I had decided that I would join.

My decision was based on the flip of a coin.

I didn't get a lot of sleep last night.

As I got up that morning and got dressed, I looked around for my dad. I wanted some words of wisdom before I went off. It's not like I was even going off to the mountains for a year just yet… I was only going to go and meet my new teacher and teammates.

"Dad, are you ashamed of me?" I asked my father.

"Why would I be ashamed of you, Chouji?" said my dad as he made me some breakfast.

"Because I'm on the Consolidation team." I said, lowering my voice as if by being quiet about it, it wouldn't be so bad.

"Chouji," laughed my father. "I'll let you in on a little secret." He looked around and leaned over to me. "_I_ was on the Consolidation team."

I froze.

"You?" I said, completely shocked. My father was an incredible ninja. How could he have possibly been one of the Consolidated ones?

"Yup!" he answered. "And look at me now! You don't have anything to worry about, Chouji!"

I suddenly felt so much better. My father had also become such a good ninja that he qualified to take Consolidated ninjas up into the mountains when he was younger. Of course, he doesn't do that anymore since he's getting older and weaning out of being a ninja, but that was certainly a fact I had never known about him.

I ate my breakfast quickly. I was running a little behind schedule.

"See you later, dad!" I called as I got up and ran to the door.

I felt better about the whole situation now.

"HEY CHOUJI!" I heard. I spun around to see Naruto, and I waved to him.

He was also still a genin, like me. I wondered if he was going to go to be Consolidated.

"Hi Naruto!" I said, figuring the best way to find out was to just ask. "Are you going to the Hokage's office for Consolidation?"

"Yeah!" Naruto answered. I felt even better that I'd be going with someone I knew as opposed to a bunch of stranger kids. "Are you too?"

I nodded. "I thought it over long and hard last night." I explained. "And I decided that I'm going to do it! And if it doesn't work out, I can at least say I tried!"

"Good!" said Naruto with a nod. "Let's get to the Hokage's office since we're going to be late if we don't go now."

The two of us quickened our pace as we made our way to the Hokage's office.

Almost as it seemed that this whole ordeal couldn't improve anymore, I saw Kiba waving to us in the distance. "Hi guys!" he called. Even though I wasn't really all that close with Kiba, him being there was still better than… someone else… who I didn't know at all…

"Are you going to the Consolidation meeting?" I asked.

"Yeah!" said Kiba. "You two too?"

"That's right!" said Naruto. "But we have to hurry or we'll be late!"

I wasn't going to argue with him as we all hurried to the Hokage's office.

When we got outside the Hokage's office, I saw Sakura standing there.

I never really liked Sakura, but I had come to like her even less recently after all the rumors that had been spread about her had finally reached me through the grapevine.

Of course, there's always the chance that some of them aren't true but I have my OWN opinions too.

Anyone who's that unconditionally mean to Ino for no reason whatsoever can't be a nice person. After all, Ino only did things to help Sakura and Sakura never did anything to actively repay her for her kindness. As a matter of fact, it's almost as if Sakura TRIED to do the OPPOSITE of repay Ino.

Even looking at her sort of offended me, so I tried not to look.

"Hi Sakura!" Naruto called.

"Naruto, don't you have someplace to be?" Sakura said.

"Yeah!" Naruto said. "I'm getting my consolidation teacher today! Do you know anything about Consolidation? All we ninjas that are still genin get assigned a new teacher and go off into the mountains for a whole year! A WHOLE YEAR, Sakura! Can you believe it?—"

It was then that I tuned out of the conversation. I looked at Kiba who looked like he was going to pass out if he had to stand there any longer. And I don't blame him. Whenever Naruto got going about Sakura, it got pretty annoying… and long… and never ended. It was only a matter of time before Sakura would shut him down and Naruto would be perfectly clueless about it all.

"Whatever Naruto." She said finally, interrupting him from his constant babbling.

We all went into the building. I felt relaxed now that I was away from Sakura even though I didn't know her too well. She still offended me…

"You can say that again Akamaru!" Kiba laughed randomly.

Kiba certainly seemed indifferent about what was going on. Sure, everything was a lot easier because of certain circumstances that had occurred just since I woke up this morning, but it was still hard.

I mean… a whole year? In the mountains?

We couldn't come home for a whole year!

That's a long time.

"Why so glum, Chouji?" Kiba said suddenly.

I hadn't realized that I was expressively looking 'glum'. I shrugged and tried to put my thoughts into a short sentence so I wouldn't babble like Naruto usually did. "I guess I'm just nervous." I said.

"Nervous?" Kiba laughed, pushing the door open as we reached the top of the stairs. "Seriously though… training in the mountains is going to be great."

"Imagine the three of us getting on the same team!" Naruto said. It was nice of them to be so supportive.

"I wonder who our teacher will be." I wondered.

"What are you three doing here?" I heard.

I looked over to see Ino and Sasuke standing there in what looked like brand new jounin vests.

"Consolidation." I answered, trying not to be affected by the vests I was incredibly jealous about. "We were put on a team and told to come here to meet our teacher."

I was happy for her…but how can someone help being jealous?

"Ohh…" Ino nodded. "So it's you three on a team now?"

I nodded and gave out a slight sigh. She smiled and then laughed out loud, not in a cruel manner, but in sort of a happy manner. It didn't make me feel bad.

I had seen her fight in the jounin exam and I was about to ask her how it felt to be a jounin now, but the door to the office they were standing in front of suddenly swung open.

I turned around to see someone I recognized standing there. It was the teacher of Neji, Tenten and Lee…

Gai, I believe?

"Welcome students of mine!" he cheered. "I am your new consolidation teacher. MAITO GAI!"

Well, I guess that answered my question. He WAS Gai.

It was pretty obvious though. He had an unusually unique look.

"Five students?" he asked. "I was told that I was to be assigned THREE but if that is the number then so be it!"

Ino waved to me quickly, grabbed Sasuke and left. I had forgotten Sasuke had been there.

But now it was just Kiba, Naruto and me there with Gai. I would be spending an entire year with these three guys up in "the mountains", wherever that may actually be.

"This mission in the mountains will be a test of your youth on a new Consolidation team!" Gai announced. "It will be hard and awkward at first, but you will slowly become accustomed to it! Mind you, it will ALWAYS be a difficult journey but as long as you have an overqualified, enthusiastic and youthful teacher like myself then no harm shall ever come to you!! Now, follow me off into the sunset!!"

I hardly understood a word he said so I just tentatively followed after him.

I saw Shikamaru as we left the building. "Shikamaru, guess what!" I called, trying to get his attention. "Shikamaru!! Hey! Shikamaru! Remember Gai?" He nodded. "Well, he's my teacher now!"

"Really Chouji?" said Shikamaru. "Good luck."

"Thanks Shikamaru!" I said as Gai called to me to hurry up.

"Now!" he said as he jumped up on a rock and instructed us to sit down in front of him. Probably to establish his alpha position. "Introduce yourselves to me and tell me one thing about yourself!"

Naruto and Kiba simultaneously began to state their names.

I had previously decided to wait until the end and give the other two their space. I know how passionately they both wanted to be the leader.

Gai pointed to Kiba.

"You go first because you're on the end." He said.

"My name is Inuzuka Kiba." He said, standing up. "This is Akamaru."

"I remember you." Gai interrupted.

"As I was saying…" Kiba said with a cough. "And someday, I plan to be a great ninja."

Gai nodded and pointed to Naruto.

"I am Uzumaki Naruto!" Naruto bellowed. "Someday, I'll be the Hokage! I'm going to work hard on this Consolidation team and show everyone that even if you're on the Consolidation team, you can still be a great ninja and Hokage!!"

Gai laughed.

"I like your spirit!" he said, and then he turned to me. "And you?"

"I'm Akimichi Chouji." I said. Then I hesitated slightly. What was I going to say? Kiba had already said that he was going to be a great ninja and Naruto already said that he was going to prove himself. Those were the two things that I wanted to do, but I didn't want to say that they had taken my idea.

So, after quickly thinking, I finally came up with an answer to complete my statement.

"And I'm going to work hard to become a good ninja just like my former teammates, Shikamaru and Ino!"

Then came Gai's long and drawn out talk. Just when I thought it ended, it kept going. It went on and on and on and I thought I was going to rip out my hair if he continued for just one more minute.

"With that being said," he said finally. I blinked many times to try and make it look like I hadn't almost fallen asleep. I hoped we wouldn't have to deal with a lot of talks like this. "As the sun sets, travel back to your homes! I will see you youths on the day we depart from the village!! What a glorious day that will be!! You are dismissed!!"

And with that, Gai was gone.

Kiba looked at the both of us and then left with his dog.

Naruto and I waited around for a minute. I looked at him. Then, since I couldn't think of anything else to say, I stood up and left him there.

The next year would be very interesting.

But I was determined to become a great ninja! Just like Ino and Shikamaru are!


	64. Rock Lee: Her Skirt

Rock Lee; 5 Years Later

Age 18

-Her Skirt-

Things have been going pretty well with Garu and I. I think we hit it off pretty good…she liked me… I liked her…

But still, I needed some time alone away from her. Which is why I decided to invite Neji and Tenten over for old time's sake! I hardly got to see Neji anymore and, when I did, I usually ended up fighting him because it turned out we were in a jounin exam or something.

Only a few hours before the party was supposed to take place, Neji cancelled.

Which was good…since I only had two TV dinners anyway…

You see…I can't really cook. And my parents aren't home.

I put on my best tuxedo and threw the two dinners in the microwave.

Wait, why had a put on my best tuxedo? It was only Tenten!

I laughed to myself and took the dinners out of the microwave when they had finished. I hoped Tenten liked chicken nuggets because I really liked pizza and, even though I was going to give her the choice of choosing of the two…I still wanted the pizza.

I was about to go to my room and change out of the tuxedo when the doorbell rang.

Was Tenten already here?

As I ran to the door, I checked a mirror. My teeth sparkled a beautiful white and I straightened my bowtie one last time. My hair was perfect. I was such a stud.

I flung the door open.

"Tenten!" I said…but not TOO loudly because I didn't want to scare her. "Welcome!"

She smiled.

Something about her looked really nice today. Oh! She was wearing a skirt. I didn't see Tenten in a skirt very often.

It looked kinda nice.

Strike that, REALLY nice.

Better than Garu in a skirt anyway.

Wait, no, not time to think about that. I quickly beckoned for Tenten to come in and looked around for something to distract myself with.

"Do you want pizza or chicken nuggets?" I asked, referring to the two TV dinners that were set at the table.

Tenten started to giggle. She put her hand over her mouth in attempt to be polite. "It doesn't matter to me!" she said.

"Good, because I was the pizza." I said, sitting down at the place with the pizza to establish the fact that it was all mine.

But… if she asked for a piece, I'd give some to her…

"It comes with a brownie." I added.

Tenten sat across from me.

In addition to wearing a skirt, something else looked different about Tenten. Had she done something to her hair? I knew she cut it last year because she said that it was getting too long and she didn't want to look like one of those hippi people who grew their hair out as long as they could.

So it wasn't her hair…I couldn't put my finger on it.

"Tenten, you look very pretty tonight." I said finally. I figured that was vague enough and maybe she'd trick herself into telling me what looked different about her.

She only blushed in response.

"No I don't…" she said. "You're just saying that."

I smiled. Maybe there wasn't anything different about her.

Maybe _I _was the different one.

I went back to eating my pizza.

I didn't know what I could say to start conversation, so I hoped that Tenten would do so.

With Neji not here, it felt awkward.

I know that must seem weird because Neji's so freaking scary when he wants to be, but with him not here…it almost seemed like… a…

"Lee…" Tenten said suddenly. I looked up, hoping to relieve myself from the foolish things I was thinking.

I thought of Garu and only Garu. Her image in my head distracted me once again. She was my girlfriend and I had a duty to her.

Tenten suddenly pointed to a spot on her cheek.

Oh no! Was she asking for a kiss?? I wasn't a man unless I kissed her! But if I kissed her, I'd be betraying Garu! What now?!

"You have some sauce on your face." Tenten said.

"Where?" I said absentmindedly in my state of relief.

"Not there!" Tenten laughed.

She grabbed a napkin and raised it to my face. I leaned over so she could reach me better. I was much taller than her.

"Right…" she touched me. She smiled.

Even though the napkin was between her skin and mine, I felt like she and I had some contact just then… a bit of a connection.

"Here…" she added with a sigh to her voice.

Our faces were pretty close. If I wanted to, I could have kissed her.

I blinked and remembered Garu.

I took her hand and brought it down. "Tenten…" I began.

Tenten immediately pulled away from me, taking her hand out of mine.

It was a mistake on both of our parts. After all, I had been the one thinking about kissing. Not once… but twice.

I went back to eating, hoping not to get anything on my face so that wouldn't happen again. As much as I did want it to happen, I knew it wasn't right. Garu was my girlfriend and besides, didn't Tenten like Neji?

When Tenten was finished, I took her tray and went to the trashcan.

"I guess, I'll go home now." Tenten said.

I turned around and watched her going towards the door. I didn't want her to leave.

"You don't have to go now." I said.

"Lee, I'm sorry." She said quietly.

Sorry for what? I knew she was referring to what had occurred at dinner, but it was all my fault.

"Why are you sorry?" I asked.

"All right, I'll stay." She smiled again.

I took a deep breath.

"Great cause I've got ice cream!" I said, going over to the freezer and pulling out the carton of ice cream that I had gotten just for this occasion. "Chocolate's all right? You like chocolate, right?"

Tenten nodded, so I got out two bowls and began scooping. It was no trouble at all, so I scooped Tenten some too.

I gave Tenten her bowl and we both went back to the table.

Tenten sat down next to me.

Then she abruptly got up and moved across from me instead. Briefly, she had been very close to me.

Man, I was being so stupid. I was close to Tenten all the time when we were training! Why was I being so critical all of a sudden?

I focused all my attention on eating the ice cream. Tenten was making me feel so uncomfortable, but in a weird sort of way. Did I want her to leave? No, I wanted her to stay. But was I afraid of what would happen if she stayed any longer? Absolutely.

I looked up to see Tenten staring at me…or actually, the ice cream that was on my face. I had accidentally been messy again.

"I know I have some on my face." I told her. "I figure that if I wipe it off now, more will just get on."

"Why don't you eat it more calmly?" she asked.

"And risk letting it all melt before I can eat it?" I said, quickly thinking up an excuse as I ate some more.

Tenten laughed. At least I could make her laugh.

When I got to the bottom of the bowl, Tenten stood up. She had hardly touched her ice cream.

"I think that I should go now." She said.

"How come?" I asked, standing up as well.

I was so much taller than her. I had always wanted to be tall, but now I didn't know whether I should sit down or stand up.

Tenten shrugged and spun around towards the door.

Was this some sort of trick she was playing on me?

Had Garu asked Tenten to do this to test my loyalty?

I grabbed a napkin and wiped off my face the best I could, quickly banishing the thought from my head. How could I be so silly? Neither Garu OR Tenten would do something like that.

"Sorry you didn't want to stay longer…" I said, coming over to her. I reached out and gave her a hug. I held her…but it felt different than all the other times I had…when we were younger…

I guess she realized that I wasn't moving, because she pulled away. But she still clung to my arms.

"I wanted to stay…" she said.

If she wanted to stay, and I wanted her to stay, then why didn't she stay? Girls are so difficult to understand.

"Then why don't you?" I asked her.

I figured that's the only way to get any answers from a girl. Just ASK her.

"My parents aren't home." I quickly added. "You're welcome to stay as long as you want."

She didn't answer to that. She looked at my eyes. I looked at hers.

Is that what was different about her?

Her eyes?

Were they even different at all?

"Lee…" she said quietly.

When she didn't continue, I decided to prompt her. "Yeah?" I said. She looked down for a moment, then up again.

Suddenly, she did something I had been hoping she'd do, but never expected her to actually do it. She stood up on her toes, grabbed my face on either side and pulled me down lower so her lips could reach mine. At first, I was surprised and shocked, but I soon realized that this is something that I wanted.

Just when I was starting to realize that this was something I REALLY wanted, she fell back onto her heels and out of my reach. I bent down to reach her, but she was already looking down at the floor.

"I'm sorry Lee."

I put my hand under her chin and moved her head up so she was looking at me again. She was different. She definitely was different.

It's not that something was different about her, she was just different from other girls. Other girls like Sakura…

…And Garu…

Garu…

I knew as long as I had an obligation to Garu, what I had just done might as well have been against the law. As much as I wanted to kiss Tenten again, and this time initiate it, Garu's image kept flashing in my head.

I couldn't help but smile at the fact that Tenten now had ice cream on her face after kissing me.

"YOU have something on your face now." I told her.


	65. Yamanaka Ino: His Eyes

Yamanaka Ino; 5 Years Later

Age 17

-His Eyes-

The jounin exam hadn't been easy this year. Not that I had taken it in a previous year but it was definitely one of the most difficult things I had ever done.

Even as I waited in the Hokage's office, pretty sure that things went well for me, I still had doubts about whether or not I would be walking away with a new vest. However, the fact that Sasuke was invited to the Hokage's office as well at the same time somehow boosted my confidence. He had done exceptionally well at the tournament and there was no way he wouldn't be promoted.

It was pretty quiet in the waiting room, Sasuke wasn't saying anything and I was too nervous to. The room looked extra large and time seemed to be standing still.

I felt Sasuke's hand cover mine suddenly. I looked over at him, he was still facing forward, staring at the door. He didn't even have to say anything but I instantly felt calmer.

I don't know how much longer we sat there but the door suddenly opened and we both stood up. I clutched Sasuke's hand tightly. Maybe a little too tightly because I could feel his hand twitch slightly.

I saw a familiar face peek out from behind the door and walk out, in his hands was a small bag.

"Hey Shikamaru!" I greeted him as he looked the two of us up and down. He gave me a slight wave as his excuse for a greeting as he closed the door.

"I have to make this quick." Said Shikamaru as he pulled two green objects out of the bag. Two green vests! "Congratulations. The both of you have been promoted to the chuunin rank."

"Chuunin?" Sasuke asked with a raised eyebrow as he took the vest from Shikamaru.

"Jounin." Shikamaru corrected himself with an annoyed expression as he turned to leave. "Sorry I can't stay."

I waved at his turned back as Sasuke put his vest on. I miss talking to Shikamaru sometimes but he always seems busy with Hokage-like business. How did HE manage to climb up so high so fast? Last time I checked, he was just Shikamaru.

"It looks great!" I told him as I put my own on and modeled it for him to see. "I knew you'd get yours."

"Yeah, I was pretty confident about it." Said Sasuke as he reached around his shoulder, tightening the size of his vest.

"You know this means we have to go on harder missions." I said, attempting to reach behind me to tighten mine as well. Suddenly, I felt Sasuke's hands on my shoulders as he spun me around and began doing it for me. It kind of made me blush feeling him do this but it's not like I minded.

When he was done, I spun around and reached my arms up and wrapped them around his neck, giving him a small kiss for helping me.

"Should we celebrate?" I asked him as I played with the hair on the back of his head.

"Probably." He responded with a nod and a smile. Call me old-fashioned but I just loved looking into his eyes when he smiled. Because he doesn't smile much, I take it when I get it, I suppose. I wanted this moment to last.

Of course, like Murphy's Law, just as I thought that, the door burst open and three extremely loud figures walked in.

"Seriously though…training in the mountains is going to be great." Said Kiba as he entered.

"Imagine the three of us getting on the same team!" Naruto announced.

"I wonder who our teacher will be." Wondered Chouji.

"What are you three doing here?" I asked to Chouji more than anyone else.

"Consolidation." Chouji replied. "We were put on a team and told to come here to meet our teacher."

"Ohh…" I said with a nod. I had heard of it but it's not like I knew much about it except for the fact that it existed. "So it's you three on a team now?"

Chouji nodded with a sigh. I couldn't help but laugh about that. I know I wouldn't want to be stuck on a team with Naruto and Kiba together. They had a tendency to be loud.

The door that Shikamaru disappeared into earlier opened suddenly. I don't know what was on everyone else's minds but the person who walked through it was definitely the LAST person I was expecting. Ever.

"Welcome students of mine!" said the newest person in the room. "I am your new consolidation teacher. MAITO GAI!"

Gai then proceeded to strike a pose that definitely made his green spandex suit seem all the less appealing.

Gai then came down from his pose slowly.

"Five students?" he asked questioningly. "I was told that I was to be assigned THREE but if that is the number then so be it!"

I looked over at Sasuke who had paused from his heated conversation with Naruto to look at Gai. Mind you, it's not like they were having a friendly chat or anything so I decided that it was a perfect time to leave. I grabbed Sasuke by his sleeve and dragged him out the door. "Time to go now."

Sasuke didn't resist much as we went outside and closed the door behind us. I wish we hadn't been interrupted in there because now there was very little chance of continuing from there.

"I'm kind of glad I was able to become a chuunin before consolidation!" I said with a laugh as I envisioned poor Chouji having to spend an extended period of time with Naruto, Kiba and Gai and NO ONE else.

"Jounin." Sasuke corrected me. I hadn't meant it like THAT.

"I know that, Sasuke." I said giving him a playful push. I don't think he likes being touched a lot as I've come to notice over the years. I refrain from it as much as possible but I think he's warmed up to me because he doesn't seem to mind anymore.

"I worked hard for this vest." He said as he tugged on it. "I want it to be acknowledged."

"I know." I said with a smile. I couldn't help but smile when he gets all passionate. Even though it can be a bit annoying, it's still funny.

"Can't kill Itachi as a chuunin…" he said but he faded toward the end. Almost as if he hadn't meant to say that last part. Or say it out loud at least.

I didn't know what to say after that so the two of us were thrown into an awkward silence. I know I didn't want to touch the subject of Sasuke's brother with a forty foot pole so I waited for him to bring up another subject.

But of course, considering he's Sasuke, no such subject was brought up.

"So…" I started, grabbing his hand. I wanted to bring back up the subject of a celebration but before I could continue, there was another interruption. Only this time, it was ten times more annoying than the previous one.

"Sasuke!!" came a sing-song voice from behind us both as we both turned around instinctively.

"Sakura…" Sasuke said slowly, giving her an uncomfortable wave. I don't blame him for being uncomfortable around her. Even though they were on the same team, she's been EXTRA tenacious about stealing him away from me. She was even dressed up with her hair all done up and plenty of make-up decorated her face.

"I heard the good news!" she said, stopping in front of us to catch her breath. She looked down at our joined hands with an angry stare. "You can let go of him now, Ino."

"I don't want to." I replied, gripping Sasuke's hand tighter. Sure it was petty but that's what she was being so I felt justified.

Sakura was undeterred. As usual.

"I say we go out and celebrate you becoming a jounin." Said Sakura. "As a team of course. Just for old time's sake."

"Naruto's busy." Said Sasuke. I really hope he wasn't actually thinking about going out and celebrating with her! I had asked first! I thought I meant more to him than she did.

"He is?" Sakura said, though you could tell she already knew that. "Then I guess it'll just have to be you and me!"

Then she looked at me with a smirk that told me that she believed that she had won.

"Sakura, I'M going out with Sasuke to celebrate." I said.

"That is SO like you Ino." Said Sakura with a glare. "Wanting to steal Sasuke all to yourself."

"We're celebrating TOGETHER because we were BOTH promoted." I said.

"I've never heard of someone work SO hard to get a guy." She said with a sigh. I couldn't believe what she was saying. "You trained to become a jounin just so that you could win Sasuke's heart?"

I looked over at Sasuke just as he turned to me. The expression hadn't changed much in his face but I wasn't sure if he was agreeing with her.

"Sakura…" I started, a little hurt. "You know that's not true…"

"Do I?" Sakura asked, her face getting evermore satisfied. She reached over and grabbed Sasuke's free hand. "Come on, Sasuke. Let's go…"

She stopped because Sasuke had pulled his hand away.

"Sasuke…?" she asked, slowly.

My heart leapt.

"Sakura, I want you to leave me alone." He said coldly. But not cold enough in my opinion.

"What, you want to celebrate with HER first?" Sakura asked, pointing to me condescendingly.

"I don't want to celebrate with you at all." He said. And that was about as final as one could get.

Sakura looked like she were trying to think of something to say, but couldn't quite piece the words together. Or any words at all. Her eyes were filled with tears and I kind of felt bad for her.

She abruptly turned around and walked away at a quickened pace. Sasuke's grip around my hand tightened as he watched her walk away.

I really wish our friendship hadn't come down to this. There's nothing more pathetic than breaking away from a friend because of a guy in my opinion but Sakura gave me no choice.

Besides, it's not like her friendship had been all that desirable recently so while I was hurt, I wasn't as hurt as I could have been.

However, something way deep inside of me told me that I still wanted to be friends with her and that I didn't want to let all of our happy memories fly out the window.

I couldn't go talk to her now but I logged talking to Sakura away on my mental to-do list.

Perhaps when the subject wasn't so new and fresh in our minds, I'd be able to talk to her about it.

Or even better…maybe I could set her up with someone else. So she'll forget about Sasuke!

Like Naruto!

Hm…Naruto's doing consolidation so he wouldn't work very well. Long-distance relationships never work.

Maybe Sakura just has to figure it all out on her own and find a guy she truly likes and who can appreciate her. Hopefully, that guy will NOT be Sasuke.


	66. One Year Later

Intro; 6 Years later

Everyone is pretty sure that he or she is the center of the universe. They all see the same event in a different way. How is everyone growing up? What will their reactions to the new events in the village be?

If Sasuke and Ino can survive dangerous missions, meeting Ino's parents shouldn't be a problem, right? Chouji, Naruto and Kiba are scheduled to return within the week but it turns out that their stay in the mountains has been extended. Hinata sits at home, waiting for Kiba to return as Neji makes a new friend. Lee and Tenten are both suffering through their own share of problems but neither can remedy the situation. Sakura tries to start all over as Shino tries to consider everything he's been through. And, even with his vast IQ, Shikamaru can't begin to understand the Hokage's reasoning...

The four teams of ninjas that we have come to know and love can't stay seventeen forever. Eventually, everyone grows up.

Will Shikamaru ever understand?

Will Naruto think everything through next time?

Will Sasuke be able to survive the night?

Will Tenten make Lee choose?

Will Hinata profess her love to Kiba?

Will Kiba always be so oblivious?

Will Shino go to Disney Land?

Will Neji sufficiently vent his hatred?

Will Ino be able to keep her secret?

Will Sakura make it as a ninja?

Will Chouji improve any more?

Will Lee ever become a great ninja?

All these questions, and many more, will be answered. One year at a time.


	67. Nara Shikamaru: Mistakes

Nara Shikamaru; 6 Years Later

Age 18

-Mistakes-

"Miss Hokage."

The Hokage looked up.

"What is it?" she said.

"I hate to sound like a broken record, but please pay attention." I repeated for probably the one-hundredth time.

"Fine, fine…" she said, picking up the papers and stacking them uselessly.

I sighed.

Ever since I outright refused to join the ANBU Squad, the Hokage has been treating me like I only recently had been promoted to jounin. Like some kind of rookie.

But that didn't stop her from giving me so much work to do that I usually had to spend the night in my office completing the assignments and assessments. I had seen more jounin and chuunin and ANBU exams in the past four years than I ever want to see in my entire life, but I get the feeling that it's never really going to stop.

Then, after the exam, we have to sit down and discuss which ninja will be promoted.

Though, I usually did most of the work and the Hokage just gave the okay to my thought processes.

"I've singled out the three that performed the best." I told her. "The rest of the fighters don't need a second look."

"So let's get this over with." The Hokage said, rolling her eyes.

I looked down at the paper I was holding. On top, read 'Aburame Shino' and had a small picture under his name.

"Aburame Shino; age eighteen." I read.

"He's a creepy young man!" the Hokage said immediately.

I nodded and agreed. I wasn't going to deny it, but I also wasn't going to let it sway my decision on whether or not to promote him.

"Let's see…he made it to the finals…" I said, peering at the notes I had taken. Things were always so blurry, but I hated the thought of needing reading glasses since I was only eighteen. Though, I wouldn't be surprised if my eyes were already going.

"Yes, I remember him." The Hokage said.

"It was his third jounin exam and he's been a Chuunin ever since age thirteen…" I continued. "He's very skilled."

"Well what do you think then?" the Hokage asked. "Should we make him a jounin or what?"

I hate it when she asked that question. As if I could just answer on a whim with a simple yes or no.

"There's a lot to consider here." I went on, continuing to shuffle through my notes. "He doesn't work well with others. All his teammates he ever went on missions with complain about his lack of teamwork skills."

"So no?" the Hokage said.

"That's not what I'm saying." I said. "I happen to believe that Aburame Shino would make a very excellent addition to our jounin team."

"Then what are we talking about?" said the Hokage, sounding frustrated even though clearly I was the one with the right to be frustrated.

"I'm just saying that he has to be put with a very large group where it wouldn't matter if he didn't contribute to the team… or go on missions by himself." I said. "He would have to be put on a team with at least five other people to be effective…"

I trailed off when I noticed the Hokage was playing with her pencil.

"Miss Hokage…" I said.

"I know, I know!" she exclaimed as if I was out of line. "You're just going in circles! We're going to be here all day at this rate! Should we make him a jounin or not?"

"_I _say yes." I said.

"YES then!" said the Hokage in a huff. "Next!"

It's a wonder she ever managed anything on her own.

I handed the paper to a chuunin I did not know who was standing behind me. He had just recently been promoted to his title so he was eager to complete jobs for us…

…The poor fool.

"Take this to Aburame Shino and inform him to come to the Hokage's office for a short meeting immediately." I said.

"Yes sir!" he said, disappearing without a word of question.

When I looked back at the Hokage, I was surprised to see that she was writing something down. I leaned over to see that she was actually drawing a doodle.

I cleared my throat.

"Miss Hokage…"

"I'm listening!" she said.

"Next up is Rock Lee." I said. "Age nineteen… he's been a chuunin since age fifteen. This is his first jounin exam."

"I like him." The Hokage said immediately. "Let's make him a jounin."

I slapped my forehead.

"You can't make someone a jounin just because you _like _him!" I told her, though she should have known that.

"AND he's a very good ninja!" said the Hokage defensively, but that was really just an after thought. I could tell.

"That may be true," I said. "But it can be incredibly dangerous to put Rock Lee on a jounin team."

"Why?" the Hokage asked.

"Rock Lee can't use ninjutsu or genjutsu." I said. "I don't know why, but he's just somehow incapable of it."

"So what are you saying?" the Hokage asked.

"I'm saying that he should take another year…maybe two… to improve more on his taijutsu." I said. "His enthusiasm and heart is there but it's just too big of a risk to take. What's worse, he tends to jump into things before thinking about them."

"So…what are you saying?" the Hokage repeated.

"I'm saying…maybe next year." I translated.

"Okay, whatever." She shrugged. "Are we done yet?"

"No, there's one more." I said.

"Who?" the Hokage asked, perking up at the fact that there was only one left.

"Hyuuga Neji, age nineteen." I answered, turning to the final page.

She slumped back in her chair with a look of confusion and distraught on her face. I couldn't figure out what it was for.

"He's probably our best chuunin." I said. "He's been a chuunin for four years and competed in last year's jounin exam. He could, no doubt, beat a lot of our jounins in a fight…on his own."

She didn't look convinced.

So I went on. "He's got incredible tactical analysis and it's quite obvious that he really _wants _to become a jounin."

The Hokage looked like she was thinking for the first time that day.

"There's nothing to think about here." I said, a little annoyed that she had finally began to consider things now that the choice was obvious. "He completely blew out the competition in the tournament."

She didn't answer.

Last year, she had had the same reaction when I had brought Neji's name up as an obvious shoo-in to the jounin rank. Eventually, she had told me that he needed more training.

I didn't argue with her since it was ultimately her decision, but I couldn't believe she was struggling so much once again.

"Miss Hokage…" I said. "I HIGHLY advise to promote Neji. He is an essential addition to our jounin squad."

The Hokage picked up her pencil and began playing with it again.

"Miss Hokage." I said.

"I don't know, Shikamaru." She said, repositioning herself in her seat.

I shook my head. Neji was a better ninja than me and here I was debating with someone on his ability.

"It IS your decision." I said. "But I can't understand why you're not making him a jounin. All you're doing is keeping one of our best ninjas from progressing to a higher level."

The Hokage mumbled something.

"What was that?" I asked.

"He needs more training." She said, though I could barely understand her.

"I cannot begin to fathom your reasoning for coming to that conclusion." I said. "And it is your decision so what you say goes. So all I can do is recommend one last time that you promote him to the jounin rank."

She didn't take her eyes off the pencil she was playing with.

"I've made my decision." She said after a long pause. "He needs more training."

I frowned. I had never considered Neji to be a pal of mine… or even on my list of people that I liked. But really… this had to be something personal because it just didn't make any sense.

"Very well." I said with a sigh. "Though I think you're making a mistake."

"Our village has survived this long without him becoming a jounin." The Hokage said as if that validated and justified her unreasonable choice. "We'll be fine. We won't crumble."

"I still think it's a mistake." I said, gathering a few of my papers and putting them in order.

"Don't say that again, Shikamaru." She said sharply.

"Yes ma'am." I said.

I made my way to the door.

There had to be something going on that I wasn't being told about.

"Oh, Shikamaru?" she said, getting her usual tone back.

"What is it?" I asked, turning around.

"I've got to go and do some things." She said, standing up. "Will you stay here and hand out the jounin vests?"

"What?" I said. She knew I hated doing that. "What could you possibly have to do?"

"Well, you know the Consolidation team from last year?" she said.

"Yeah." I said. That was the team Chouji was on. Chouji…wow, had it really been a year? "They should be coming back any day now."

"No," the Hokage corrected. "Gai has decided to keep them for an extra year."

I don't think I really grasped the concept for a good ten seconds.

"…He can do that?" I said finally.

The Hokage paused. "Technically, no." she said. "I have to go and meet with him now to discuss his reasoning and inform the families. You understand, don't you?"

"…I guess…" I said with a sigh. I guess I'd rather hand out the vests than do what she was going to go do.

"Okay, great." Said the Hokage as she went to the door and left.

I felt a headache coming on as I sat down back in my seat.

I looked at the paper on the top of the stack that had Neji's picture on it. What exactly _was _going on?

Suddenly, the ninja I had sent earlier to get Shino came in.

"Miss Hoka—" he began, and then looked around. "Er…Mr. Shikamaru sir, Aburame Shino is here."

"Okay then…" I said, reaching under the desk and pulling out a green jounin vest.

I stood up and went to the door just as Shino walked in.

"Congratulations Shino." I said. "You are now a jounin."

He took the vest from me.

"What are you going to do now?" I said. I don't know WHAT possessed me to crack a 'What are you going to do now?' joke. Especially since I'm me and he's Shino.

I felt kind of stupid because there's no way Shino would understand that.

He looked at his vest and then back up at me.

"I'm going to Disney Land."


	68. Uzumaki Naruto: Go Either Way

Uzumaki Naruto; 6 Years Later

Age 18

-Go Either Way-

Consolidation hadn't been THAT bad. I could already FEEL the Hokage hat resting on my head. I would laugh at Sasuke SO badly.

"To a year in the mountains!" said Gai as he held up a glass. Me, Chouji and Kiba both lifted our glasses to Gai's and toasted to that.

"A year in the mountains!" We all agreed happily.

While it was nice to finally be ending my year up in the mountains training intensely, I sort of wish I could stay up there. Some of the best times in my life were spent up there with the guys. I could also always work more on my ninja skills more JUST to make sure.

However, the chuunin exams were only a few weeks away and I could literally feel the vest over my shoulders. I was so excited!!

I put my drink down next to my plate.

…

Next to my plate that was being used as a DOG BOWL!!

"Kiba, get your dog off the table!" I told Kiba as I tried to stop Akamaru from eating all my food. It was too late though, he had already contaminated it.

Kiba laughed at me. Jerk.

"Akamaru, are you going to take that from Naruto?" he asked his dog. It took me a really long time to get used to Kiba talking to his dogs as if it was normal. I don't think I ever did.

"You're no fun anymore, Akamaru." Akamaru said to his dog. I shrugged and decided to disregard Kiba and take his food while he was distracted with talking to his dog.

It didn't take long before Gai decided that Kiba talking to his dog was annoying enough so he cleared his throat to get our attention.

"Okay…" he said. "As soon as we finish eating, we're going to have one last training session before continuing on our way! How's that sound, youthful students of mine?"

"Yes sir!" we all said as we saluted our teacher.

I don't know whether or not I liked Kakashi better than him. Gai was a little more lively but Kakashi was a bit more sane.

I guess my favorite will always have to be Iruka.

I definitely liked this team better than my old one though. While I long for having Sakura on my team again, not having Sasuke on it makes it worth it.

Kiba's lots of fun and Chouji's…Chouji. Not much to say. He's just another guy.

A waitress suddenly came over and asked Kiba if he needed his water filled up. That was the FIFTH waitress today that asked him when his water was completely full! And mine was almost all empty!

Of course, I was smart enough to know that the ladies were after him. Why does Kiba get all the luck?

"No." Kiba said obliviously. "Thanks though!"

Why didn't he notice it! If it were me, I'd have her in no time!! He could have ANY girl he wants and he doesn't do anything about it!

Though, I have heard him talking in his sleep or to Akamaru a few times. He seems to have a thing for Hinata. She's so weird though! I mean, she's a nice friend but I can't see anyone perusing her as a girlfriend.

But whatever. At least he didn't have a crush on Sakura. She was mine.

The waitress giggled and put a few drops in Kiba's filled glass and then left.

I decided to see if Kiba was paying attention so I leaned over to him and got his attention.

"Hey Kiba." I whispered to him as he leaned in. "Which one do you like the best?"

Kiba looked at me with the most dumbfounded look EVER.

"One what?" he asked me.

I knew it. Could you be any more thick?

"Waitress, you dolt!" I yelled at him, barely holding back the urge to smack him upside the head.

"Oh I don't know." Kiba said, thoughtfully. "They all seem really efficient. All three of them really just want to wait on my water!"

I could hear Chouji laughing behind me. Even HE got it and he's NEVER going to get a girlfriend. Ever.

"The waitress with blond hair smells the best." Kiba said. I didn't even know how to respond to that so luckily, Chouji did.

"Just…stop." He said, trying to keep from laughing too obviously in Kiba's face.

"Students!" Gai announced as he stood on his chair. This was something I didn't like about Gai. He was always so loud and annoying. "When you have eaten your full, meet me behind the restaurant where we will commence our training session!"

We all stood up to follow Gai except Chouji. He looked as though he were trying to finish the last bits of food but there was a lot still on it. And it's not like he only quickly ate a few more bites and then stood up. He literally ate the rest of the food on the table. Even my food that Akamaru slobbered in!

We followed Gai back outside.

"This training exercise will focus on an extremely important aspect of becoming a ninja." Gai said as he picked up a rope. "Getting up when you're down, even when you're against all odds!"

We listened to what he was saying as he walked in front of us like an army sergeant.

"I shall tie one of you to a tree somewhere in this vast forest." Gai said, looking off at a forest behind him. He was crying but that was normal. "Then, on my word, the other two must leap into the trees, locate their partner and set him free."

"Piece of cake!" Kiba said loudly. Idiot. I bet that ruined everything.

But then again, I was going to say it too. He just got to it first.

I saw Gai smile and I knew that it would be hard.

But not TOO hard. After all, I'm going to be Hokage.

"At that point, it'll be a race between you three and me to get back to the top of the mountain." Continued Gai. I paused for a second. Wait a second!!

"Back to the top?!" I told him. "We're half way down!!"

"I hope you were all paying attention on the way down." Gai said with a smile but the tears were still present. "Because, if you don't beat me to the top then we will spend another entire year up there training for the exam."

Wait…WHAT?!

Hm…

No. I definitely didn't want to spend another year up here.

"Another YEAR?" Kiba demanded.

"Yes!" said Gai. "To add to it all, I will begin my trek up the mountain as soon as I signal the two teammates to enter the forest to free the third so I will have a head start."

This is getting more and more ridiculous.

"What, you need a head start?" I asked him.

I suddenly felt Gai's fist on my face. That was a regular occurrence. I learned to get used to it.

"NO! What did I say before I began this explanation?! This training exercise is focused on coming back after you're down and fighting against all odds! If your enemy is ahead of you, you must be able to catch up with him and beat him to the target! Am I understood?"

"Yeah." Kiba said. "We shouldn't lose too much time finding whichever one of you two are going to be tied up because me and Mamemaru will be able to find you in a second."

Made sense to me. I nodded at Kiba.

"Unfortunately, in the ninja world, you cannot just go around deciding who is the captured one. Missions are unpredictable! It's impossible to plan for anything!! Therefore, I have elected Kiba to be the victim!" Gai explained.

"WHAT?!" I yelled with my teammates.

"Don't _I _have a say in the matter?!" Kiba asked.

"Would you have in a say in the matter if you were captured in a REAL ninja mission?!" Gai asked us all. He was crying so hard, the front of his shirt was stained with tears.

What a freak!

"You two are not to move until I return!" said Gai as he grabbed Kiba and dragged him off.

Chouji and I stood around waiting for a minute or two.

"I really don't want to be up here another year." Said Chouji.

"I could go either way." I admitted to him.

We waited around a bit longer. Chouji's not very fun to talk to so there was no conversation exchange.

Gai suddenly appeared up on a rock over by the edge of a cliff.

"GO!!!" he bellowed, striking a pose.

Chouji and I took off as fast as we could. We knew since Gai had started up on that cliff, he was already a good deal in front of us. Plus, we still had to find Kiba.

While I was probably the fastest out of the three of us (or anyone maybe), Chouji had a lot to lug around so he was pretty slow.

"Chouji, hurry up!" I yelled back to him as he panted and trudged up the mountain.

"I can't go faster than this…" Chouji said pathetically.

"Sticking together is key!!" I heard a voice yell. I looked up to see a giant rock rolling right toward me. I had no problem getting out of the way but Chouji probably didn't see it coming.

"Look out!!" I yelled to Chouji.

Maybe he didn't hear me or something because he didn't even bother getting out of the way. He allowed his body to take the full force of the boulder.

"Chouji!" I called to him as I ran back down to his side.

"Just keep going!" I heard his voice as the boulder suddenly shattered into many pieces and Chouji literally came out of NOWHERE.

I don't know what I was thinking. I had been training with Chouji for a year, I should know that a mere boulder smashing into his head is not going to injure him.

I looked up the ledge that Gai was standing on earlier. It would take us a long time to get up there if we go around…

"It'll be shorter if we climb right up!" I called to Chouji. I know that as Chouji has gotten larger over the years, his climbing skills have weakened. But it wasn't that high so it shouldn't be THAT hard.

I didn't even bother listening for Chouji's input. Out of the two of us, I was the better leader and he knew his place. I began climbing up the rock, assuming Chouji was right behind me.

I climbed up to the top with no ease only to find Gai standing up at the top.

"Ha!" I said to Chouji, not even looking back. "We've got nothing to worry about! Gai's not even close to the top!"

"Have I taught you NOTHING?!" Gai yelled as he put his foot on my head and gave me a firm kick. I lost my grip on the rock and fell backwards. I felt myself land on something (or someone, I guess) as I collided with Chouji.

The two of us hit the ground hard but didn't stop there. I guess it's because Chouji's so round and that I was on top of us but the two of us commenced in rolling down the mountain.

We crashed through trees and rocks and stumps. I was thankful that I was on the inside because I don't think I would be able to handle doing this if Chouji weren't there.

After what seemed like ten minutes, we finally came to a stop. I separated myself from Chouji, breathing deeply as Chouji, seemingly uninjured, did the same.

I felt a few raindrops on my face. I looked up to see it was raining.

I knew we had failed and that we would have to spend another year up here. I couldn't hold back my tears of disappoint and anger but the rain hid them well.

"AHEM!!" I heard from behind us as I turned around to see Gai standing there with Kiba at his feet. Kiba sat up, rubbing his head and looked around. "Students of mine…it is decided. We will spend… one more year on the mountain!"

As much as it stung me to know I would be up here for another year, it hurt even more to know that we needed it.


	69. Uchiha Sasuke: Survive the Night

Uchiha Sasuke; 6 Years Later

Age 18

-Survive the Night-

It was a very odd period of time right now. I had been dating Ino for a while, exactly how long, I'm not quite sure but it had been a couple of years.

However, we weren't allowed to let her parents know that we were dating so we had to keep it a secret until she turned eighteen. Now that she WAS eighteen, we had to pretend as though we had just started dating.

I dismissed that as weird but not too hard. I'd be able to pull it off reasonably easy as long as I didn't see them very often.

That was only until her parents insisted on having me over for dinner.

Not only that, but they scheduled it the day before an important mission.

"We should be getting ready for our mission tomorrow." I told Ino as we got all dressed up to go. The shirt I was wearing had been sitting in the back of my closet and I didn't have time to clean it so I hope no one notices. "We don't have time to do this…"

Ino brushed my shirt of, making sure it was entirely presentable.

"Oh Sasuke, don't worry about it." She said with a smile. She grabbed my collar and messed it all up. She has a habit of doing that a lot and it's sort of turning into one of my pet peeves.

She went over to the mirror to check her hair, leaving me to fix the collar that USED to be just the way I liked it.

"Do you remember the story?" she asked me as she turned around.

"Yeah…" I responded. She wrote out a little script for me to follow for her parents to humor them. She made sure to go over it many times just in case I slipped up.

"Okay." she said. "Just remember, if my dad found out that I've been dating you for all this time without telling him then he's going to immediately make assumptions."

Assumptions? What kind of assumptions? That I've done something to her? I suddenly became slightly nervous. The last thing I needed was someone thinking about me that way. I need to revive the clan but I'm not _that_ desperate.

"Everything has to be absolutely perfect!" she repeated again and again. It was beginning to get frustrating but I guess it was important to her for her parents to believe everything we were going to lie about tonight.

"I still don't know how you possibly kept this a secret for three years." I told her.

She smiled casually.

"It's hard sometimes. But we won't have to keep it a secret anymore."

Even if we kept it a secret this long and as of yet they didn't know, it's not like it'll be a secret forever.

But then again, in the future it didn't matter.

"You know…" I started, walking over to her and grabbing her hand. "It'll come out sooner or later."

"Hopefully, we'll all be older and be able to look back at that and laugh." She sighed. There was a short lull so I moved in front of her and pulled her in close. She looked kind of peaceful for the first time today.

"So…?" I said quietly, not wanting to ruin the calm atmosphere. "Is it time to go?"

She looked to the side of me at the clock. Her eyes suddenly bugged out.

"Oh no!" she yelled. She yelled as she suddenly brought her arm up and smacked me right in the nose.

I hate getting hit in the nose. I grabbed it out of shock and looked down at my hand.

"Oh, Sasuke, I'm sorry!" Ino yelled excitedly. "I didn't mean to! Are you all right?"

Is that blood in my hand?

"I think my nose is bleeding—" I said, stating the obvious. I let go of my nose and looked at her.

"I'm so sorry!" she said, running into the other room. I grabbed my nose and tried to keep as little blood as possible from getting on the ground. I didn't want to have to spend too long cleaning later.

Ino returned a minute later with a napkin and practically clamped her hand over my nose as hard as she could, napkin in had.

"Ow, ow, ow…" I said, instinctively trying to pull away from her grasp.

"Don't be such a baby, Sasuke!" she told me. Then she changed the subject. "We're late!"

I didn't like her grabbing so hard onto my nose. It already hurt a lot from her hitting me there.

"I'll take that." I said as I took the napkin from her and held it on myself. I could feel the napkin getting wet from all the blood. "I think we're going to need more napkins."

"Oooh…" Ino said as she ran back into the other room, returning a few seconds later with practically all the napkins I had in my house. Then she threw them up in the air and let them rain down on top of me.

"Has it stopped yet?" she asked.

"What do you think?" I asked her as I switched to a new napkin.

"Sasuke…I'm so sorry!" she said, sadly. "Are you angry at me?"

I paused for a second. I wasn't mad, of course. But, naturally, I was frustrated.

"Sasuke?" she repeated.

I guess I had forgotten to answer her out loud.

"No, I'm not angry." I pulled the napkin away from my nose and waited to see if it was done bleeding. Nothing came out for a second and I was mildly relieved. The, out of absolutely nowhere, it started bleeding again as fast as ever.

"Are you a hemophiliac or something!" Ino demanded as she stuffed about twelve wadded up napkins in my face. "Sasuke, you'll have to stop the bleeding on the way there! We're way too late!"

"All right all right…" I said as she grabbed my hand and dragged me over to the door. She opened the door.

Right into my face.

I fell to the ground, in shock once again.

It didn't hurt that much but I guess I wasn't ready for the door to open right into my face.

I lied there for a second, not wanting to get up.

"Oh my god!" I heard Ino's voice as she bent over. "Sasuke! Are you all right!"

"I don't think I'm going to survive the night." I said as I sat up. I looked down and saw that I had gotten a little bit of blood on my shirt.

Ino disappeared into my bedroom and returned a minute later with a new shirt.

"Come on, come on!" she said. "We'll just tell my dad you got those from a mission we were just on!"

She ripped my shirt off for me even though I was perfectly capable of doing it myself. Then she began forcing me into the new one.

Then she stood up and tentatively opened the door, looking at me as if I was the opened who practically THREW the door into the other one.

She walked reasonably quickly to her house, a little bit ahead of me. I walked fast but I wasn't power walking like she was. She occasionally glanced over her shoulder at me but continued going fast.

By the time we reached Ino's house, my nose had stopped bleeding. Which was fortunate for me because I didn't want my nose to be bleeding AND have to deal with huge lump I now had on my forehead.

"Okay, are you ready?" she said to me, looking more nervous than she really needed to be.

"I guess…" I said as I pulled out a clean napkin and wiped my hands off. A lot of the blood had dried to my hands so I'd have to clean them in the bathroom.

Ino opened the door and walked in.

"Mom?" she yelled. "Dad? I'm home!"

We walked around, within view of the door when her mother suddenly came over.

"Ino!" Her mother said coming over. Her mother kind of looked like her. "We were wondering where you were! And this must be—"

She looked at my face. Or more specifically the lump I had just gotten at my forehead. It was pretty obvious she was staring.

"—and this must be the famous Uchiha Sasuke that we've heard endless stories about! Won't you come in?"

"Hi Mrs. Yamanaka." I said. I could now officially not breath out of my nose anymore.

Ino took my arm and we walked further into the house.

"Hey mom, sorry we're late." She said. "We uh…were running behind schedule."

We were running behind schedule to begin with. But we were only REALLY late because Ino had subconsciously become abusive.

"It's all right!" said her mother with a smile.

We went into what looked like a dining room where I saw Ino's father standing up. He reached his hand out to shake mine but I was reluctant to do so because I hadn't washed them yet. I wanted to make a good impression though so I stuck my hand out and turned it at an angle so maybe he wouldn't notice.

Unfortunately, they were bloodier than I thought and I think he noticed anyway.

"We were getting ready to send out a search party!" her father said with a chuckle.

"Haha…yeah…" Ino said. I hope I wasn't embarrassing her.

We sat down at a table set for six people. Ino's eyes wandered to the two extra place settings.

"Mom…Dad…are you expecting someone else tonight?" she asked.

"Oh well…we figured that Sasuke's parents were coming along." Ino's mother said.

My parents?

Ino spit her water across the table just as I could feel my nose bleeding again. I brought both of my hands up to my face.

MY parents?

The ones that Itachi killed over ten years ago?

They wouldn't be coming.

"Oh, Sasuke!" Ino said, shoving a napkin up my nose.

"Is something the matter, Sasuke, dear?" Ino's mother asked.

I didn't want to be rude to her but you'd think my last name would have clued her in on why my parents wouldn't be showing up.

Then again, it was an awfully long time ago so maybe she forgot.

But then AGAIN, that's not something people should easily forget.

"No, nothing's wrong." I told her. I didn't want to make the mood morbid so I thought up a lie. "My parents were unavailable tonight."

"Oh…that's too bad." Said Ino's mother. "Well, I'd sure like to see them sometime."

"I would too." Said Ino's father.

I didn't know what to say about that. Neither of them knew or remembered anything about my clan getting killed.

I guess that's how much everyone cares to remember about it.

The meal was very awkward after that. My nose stopped bleeding again and I felt bad about bleeding all over a cloth napkin.

I think it's ridiculous to say that I lost a lot of blood that day because of a bloody nose but I was beginning to feel a little light-headed.

Or maybe that was because I got hit in the head with a door.

"So…what made you have interest in my daughter?" I suddenly heard myself being asked. I turned to Ino's father.

"Her tenacious ambition as a ninja." I answer honestly. I had thought about that a lot actually. "She impressed me because she wasn't like all the other girls who only became ninjas so I would notice them."

"Yes…Ino is a very gifted ninja." Her father said with a nod. "I myself wasn't a jounin until I was twenty-four. Ino?"

"Oh…yes?" said Ino, looking as though she was slightly out of it.

"Could you give Sasuke and I a few minutes to talk?" Ino's father said out of nowhere. "Man to man?"

"Um…sure!" Ino said as she stood up to leave. I didn't know what was going to be asked of me but I think as long as I said exactly how I felt… and didn't tell that we've been going out for years, it would be okay. I nodded to her just as she and her mother left.

Ino's father turned to me like he was interrogate me.

"Sasuke, I have to admit, you're a pretty weird kid." Said her father suddenly.

I didn't know what to say about that.

"Okay…" I said.

"And I know my daughter likes you." He continued. I nodded. "So I'll allow her to date you."

Should I thank him or something?

"Thank you?" I said.

"But I'll have you know…" he continued. "I've only got one daughter."

I nodded.

"She's my little girl. My princess. My pride and joy." He gave me a suspicious look. "And I'm her overprotective father."

I continued nodding. That'd make him happy.

"Not just one of those normal overprotective fathers either." He kept going. "I'm one of those unrealistically overprotective fathers. And if you do anything to my little Ino that makes her unhappy…"

He turned to me with most sinister glare I had ever seen.

"Well, you get the picture, right?"

Was he threatening me?

Though I was offended, I didn't show it. I just nodded and the two of us stood up.

"I would shake your hand but…I think you need to wash them first." He told me as he pat me firmly on the back.

Ha ha…I'm kind of glad I didn't try to go through this when I was fifteen.


	70. Tenten: His Choice

Tenten; 6 Years Later

Age 19

-His Choice-

What had happened two nights before wasn't a fluke.

But if that was the case, why wasn't Lee calling me?

He still didn't let go of Garu. I could see why, though. She was a beautiful girl who was also very nice to him. She loved him, I could see that much. Usually we didn't let things get out of hand but…well…

I guess that's why he wasn't calling…

This wouldn't be so hard if Garu wasn't so nice…

It was now going to be put to rest, though. And, even though I promised myself I'd never do this, I was going over to Lee's house at this very moment to ask him to choose between Garu and myself.

I couldn't live like this.

Half of it was the guilt…but the other half was me. I wanted Lee all to myself and didn't want to share him.

I climbed up Lee's front steps and went to knock.

I hesitated.

Then I took a deep breath. If I could brave the Forest of Death then I could easily just TALK to Lee. That's all we were going to do after all…

Just…TALK…

Finally, I knocked on the door.

It opened up and Lee was there.

"Tenten!" he said.

"Hi Lee." I said.

"I—meant to call you…" Lee stuttered. "Come in."

I nodded and went inside. What was I doing? I couldn't ask him to choose. I was going about this all wrong…

But if I didn't ask him now then I'd tear him apart!

"Lee, I have to ask you." I said. "Do you love me? Or is this just a fling?"

"I _do_ love you." Lee said, grabbing me by the hands. His hands weren't soft, but they were certainly strong.

I couldn't look at him.

"Do you love Garu?" I asked quietly.

I felt his grip on my hands loosening.

I understood. Things weren't ever going to move from this spot. I felt tears start flowing down my face as I turned away from him so he couldn't see me crying, even though it was quite obvious that I was.

"I have to go." I said.

"Tenten, wait, please." Lee said.

I waited. I wanted him to tell me that he didn't love Garu.

That's when I saw someone coming up the front steps. HER. It was Garu.

"Hi Lee!" she called since she could see us both. "Hi Tenten!"

I turned away from where she was coming. I didn't need her to see me crying either.

"Oh…" she said. "Am I interrupting something?"

"No." I said. "Nothing at all. I was just leaving."

"Don't you want to stay for a little while?" Garu asked.

"No, that's all right." I said, walking by her and out the door. She waved to me.

"Bye Tenten." Said Lee quietly.

No matter how hard I tried, I couldn't hate Garu. I just couldn't.

So what now?

I got rejected from Neji pretty harshly. I thought my heart could never love again.

But then I loved Lee.

And got rejected again.

Would my heart be able to recover for a second time?

I saw Sakura ahead of me. She was leaning over a fence and looking at the Uchiha residence. She above all people knew about recovery. Something clicked in her last year and she suddenly became the same old Sakura that I remembered back before the world got complicated.

She was completely captivated by the home that she didn't even notice my approach. I quickly wiped away my tears and took a deep breath.

"Sakura?" I said, but my voice was hardly above a whisper and she didn't hear me. I cleared my throat and tried again. "Sakura?"

She looked up and smiled. "Tenten, hi!" I said. She peered at me curiously. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing really…" I answered. Even though I wanted to tell her what had happened, how would anyone be able to understand my situation? I'd just look like the village tramp! "I'm just taking a walk…"

Sakura bit her lip.

"So…do you like being a chuunin?" she said.

Sakura was smarter than that. She knew something was upsetting me but she was purposely avoiding asking what.

"It's okay." I replied. I couldn't see myself remaining a ninja for very much longer but it was fun while it lasted.

"What's wrong?" Sakura asked after a moment of internal battling.

Everything fell out. "I'm just feeling a little overwhelmed." I said. "I sort of miss being a genin and having Lee and Neji on my team. I mean…things were so less complicated back then."

I didn't even realize until just then that that's what my problem was. I wanted to go back to that place before I realized that I needed someone's love.

"Things can't stay uncomplicated." Sakura said.

She was right. "I know…" I said. If I couldn't return to that time, I could at least go for a nostalgic visit of our old training area. Maybe that would make me feel better. "I was just going to go and stop by the place where we always used to train." I didn't want to be alone. "Do you…want to come?"

"Oh um…" Sakura stuttered. "I actually… um… am doing something right now. Sorry, though!"

Doing something? Like obsessively watching Sasuke's house in home that he might stop by?

I didn't say that, though. "Okay, that's all right." I said even though I was thoroughly upset. "See you later, then?"

"Yeah." Sakura said.

I swallowed hard and passed by her.

Why was Lee just fooling with my heart?!

I took another deep breath.

If he didn't love me, he could just tell me. Neji had the decency to at least do that.

As I drew nearer to the training area where we used to train all the time, I could hear voices.

"I don't want to bother unless you KNOW you're stronger." Came Neji's voice.

"I am stronger!" It was Lee! "I'm stronger than you are!"

I poked my head out from around a tree. It was both of them, looking like they were getting ready to fight.

"Are you?" Neji said.

"Yes, I am!" said Lee. "And I'll prove it!"

"Then let's see." Said Neji.

They both were so strong. Lee, so kind and nice. Then there was Neji who, despite the fact that he was so bastardly and cruel to everyone for no reason whatsoever… was just the biggest stud in the entire village. He was studlier than even Uchiha Sasuke, in my opinion.

That's when I noticed that Lee was looking at me.

I hadn't been paying attention and pretty soon, Neji was looking at me too.

I cleared my throat in an embarrassed fashion. I should have been paying attention rather than admiring them.

"Hi guys…" I said. "Are you fighting again?"

"It's just a spar!" said Lee, walking over to me. "Nothing serious!"

I looked at Lee.

He wasn't attractive…but I could get used to that face.

"Lee, I think we're done." Neji said.

"What?" said Lee. "We've hardly started! Strike that, we HAVEN'T started!"

Neji didn't respond to that. He only started walking away.

But he stopped when he was right by the two of us. I knew he was going to say something because he wouldn't have stopped if he didn't have something on his mind that he was going to be vocal about.

"Neji!" said Lee. I suppose he realized that Neji was going to say something hurtful too.

"Lee, you are no stronger than when I last fought you five years ago." Neji began.

Once he gets started, all you can really do is brace yourself and take it. Otherwise, you could be down for days.

Just look at me.

I was down for a year.

"I cannot believe I even began to think you would be a worthy opponent and that you actually progressed all these years. You're the same as you always were."

"Neji, stop!" I said. He was going WAY too far.

"There is a REASON why you can't use ninjutsu or genjutsu." Neji said with complete disregard for my request. "It is not in your fate to be a ninja. If it was your destiny then you would not have been born with that impairment."

Lee didn't answer.

I could tell he was shocked.

I knew nothing I could say would make him feel better. Neji had hit him just where it hurt.

Neji had done his damage so he was going to pack it up and leave. I see Neji's back far too often.

Lee and I stood there in silence for a long time.

"Tenten." He said. "About earlier."

I forced a laugh out. I didn't want to make him choose.

"Isn't it a coincidence that all three of us came here on the same day?" I said, trying to change the subject.

"Tenten, don't change the subject." Said Lee.

How did he know?

"Well, what is it then?" I said, trying to put on an angry face. But I wasn't really angry… though sometimes it helped.

"This is a very hard time in my life right now." Lee said. "Everything is very complicated. I can't handle it all."

"I can't handle any of it." I agreed as I felt more tears trying to escape.

"I'm sorry." He said. "I'm working to become a good ninja."

He was choosing.

But he wasn't choosing Garu or me.

"What does this mean?" I asked.

"I have to focus on my training." Lee said. "I've told Garu this."

"Garu, Garu, Garu!" I said. "I don't want to hear her name anymore! All I want is a straight answer, Lee! You have to tell me if you love her or me!"

There. I had done it.

And I regretted it a moment later.

"I…"

He stuttered.

"It's like…"

"Just…just…" I started as I stood up on my toes and put my hands on his shoulders. I brought him down just a little bit so I could reach him. He looked like he was ready to kiss me.

But all I could think of was Garu.

And I'm sure that's all he thought of too.

I put my hand on his chin and angled his head down. I gave him a small kiss on the forehead.

"So…that's the way it is." Lee said.

"I'll wait for you." I told him. "So when Garu isn't what you imagined, I'll be here."

I relaxed.

It wasn't any easier, but hopefully I had gotten a weight off his chest. I turned my back him and walked away.

He didn't do anything to stop me.


	71. Hyuuga Hinata: Little Hearts

Hyuuga Hinata; 6 Years Later

Age 18

-Little Hearts-

I always get nervous when I see Neji. He's just such an unpleasant person, especially to me.

And it's always even worse when he's angry.

This time, however, he didn't take out his anger on me.

He had good reason to be angry and the cause of his anger was kind of my fault too.

For the past couple years, Neji has been unable to advance to the rank of a jounin. While everyone keeps telling him that he needs more training, only my father and the Hokage know the real reason. And me.

I disagreed with my father doing this to him but it's not like he would listen to me.

I suddenly heard a loud crash and I looked up in the sky to see many birds fly away in a frenzied state.

I should…talk to him. Tell him what's going on. That would be the right thing to do.

I walked over to where I saw him looking up into the sky, sitting down. He looked calm and peaceful. Probably the best time to talk to him.

"Um…Neji…?" I started, not knowing how to word this. What if he got angry at ME?

He stood up and looked at me.

"What do you want?" he asked.

Why is he so hostile?

I didn't know what to say so I paused for a moment, trying to think of how to word it.

"I thought so." He said, shaking his head. He turned to walk away but I couldn't let him get away without hearing the truth.

"Neji—" I called, taking a step toward him.

"_What?_" he spat out impatiently. He had a certain glare in his eyes. I suddenly lost everything I wanted to say.

"I'm—" I started. I couldn't say it anymore. I had to think of something else quickly. "I'm…I'm sorry…you weren't promoted… I thought you did well."

He didn't say anything after that. It's not like I was searching for a reaction for what I just said. It was irrelevant. As his attention was distracted by an approaching person's, I turned to walk away.

Why did he hate me so much? I didn't do anything to him.

But my father did. That must be it.

I made my way back to my house and to my bedroom. All I could think about was Neji and how angry he seemed.

Then my mind unintentionally wandered.

I hadn't meant for it to wander there, but it had. And it had been doing it a lot lately.

What was Kiba doing right now?

Well, of course he was away training but what was he thinking about, what was he doing right now and…did he miss me?

Kiba's not the kind of guy to forget about someone a person but that wasn't what I was worried about. I knew he'd always remember me but how did he think of me?

My father had recently informed me that their group would be training for another year. Another year in the mountains?

I sat down at my desk, pulled out a pen and piece of paper. I think I'll write Kiba a letter. Tell him how I feel. That way, he'll know.

"_Dear Kiba…" _I read out loud to myself. _"For years we have been really good friends. We have trained together, fought together, shared laughs and cries together and even grown together."_

I paused. Was it too straight forward? I shrugged to myself and continued writing.

"_However, for a while I have felt that we have grown to be more than just friends. When you are with me, I am happy and when you are not there, I feel empty inside."_

I stopped writing again. WAY too straight forward. I crumpled that letter up and threw it in the trash can.

"_Dear Kiba…" _I started all over. _"How has training been? I've missed you a lot and I hope you are doing all right up there."_

It's a good start. Nothing was a lie or an over exaggeration.

"_Without you here, life just isn't as fun. I find myself easily bored and checking to see if you have come back when I know you're not. Sometimes, I wish that you were here so that we could have fun together."_

I stopped again. Still a little too forward. I threw that one in the trash as well.

I took a deep breath and looked down at the new piece of paper in front of me.

"_Dear Kiba." _I wrote. _"I hope you're having fun training! I thought I'd write you a letter to tell you that I miss you! You're such a good friend! Well, I'll see you when you get back!"_

That one might be too subtle.

But there was no way I was going further than that. I folded that one up and put it in an envelope.

I picked the envelope up and walked outside. I'd have to take it to the Hokage to have it delivered to him.

It was nothing more than a friendship letter asking how he was. It was far from the letter I WANTED to mail him but it would have to do.

I looked down at the letter in my hand. Maybe I don't want to mail it. What if Kiba got the wrong idea from the letter?

I turn around to go back home but then I stopped.

But what sort of wrong idea was there to infer?

Maybe I should add something to the letter…

I suddenly heard someone calling my name.

"Hey Hinata!" Sakura called to me as she jogged over to me, panting and breathing heavily.

"Oh…hello Sakura." I said to her, hiding the letter. I didn't need her asking me about it. However, she noticed it.

"What's that?" she said, craning her neck to see.

"Nothing…" I said as I moved the letter so that maybe she couldn't see it now.

It really wasn't her business. I didn't feel like sharing.

"Come on, tell me!" she said, reaching out to grab it. She was acting like such a little kid.

She snatched it from my hands and held it triumphantly in front of her.

"Oh!" I said, reaching for it. She wouldn't hand it back to me however no matter how much I wanted her to.

She examined it carefully but nothing told anything about the letter. Who it was for, what it said or what it was SUPPOSED to say.

"Is this a letter?" she asked. "To who?"

"I wasn't going to mail it…" I told her. It wasn't a lie. I had decided not to mail it. Or had I decided TO mail it?

"That didn't answer my question." She told me with a big smile on her face. Did she know it was for Kiba?

"Well…" I said. "I was just going someplace quiet so I could write something…"

Maybe I did want to add more to the letter.

"Is it a letter to Naruto?" Sakura asked. Of course it wasn't for Naruto, but she was on the right track. "I don't know why you're bothering. He's coming home in a few days."

Oh…she didn't know.

"No…no they're not." I told her. "My father…my father told me that they're staying for another year…"

"Another year?" she gasped. She didn't seem to mind but she did look surprised. "They can do that?"

"I guess…" I told her. "So I just want to send a few words of encouragement to him."

Sakura's face lit up.

"Him?" she said, smirking at me. "And I thought you weren't going to send it!"

"It's Kiba…he was on my team…" I told her.

Nowhere in that sentence was a lie.

"Okay, Hinata…" She said slowly. She looked at me with a raised eyebrow. Then she looked as though she suddenly remembered something. "I have to go! See you later!" Then she turned and ran off as I waved to her.

I looked down at the letter in my hand. I wanted to send Kiba SOMETHING.

I HAD to send him the letter.

So I began walking toward the Hokage's office.

He'd be happy to get the letter I bet. It'll be sort of an encouragement because he has to spend another year up there in the woods. Even though Kiba likes camping and the woods, I bet it's FAR from a camping trip up there.

I walked in the door of the Hokage's office but only into a sort of waiting room or a receptionist area. I had never mailed a letter to someone without an address before but I think that since he's on a mission, all I have to do is put his name and his teacher's name on the envelope.

Taking out a pen, I leaned up against the wall and began neatly writing Kiba's name out on the envelope.

Then, below it I put down his teacher, Gai.

I flipped the envelope over and looked at it. It looked so empty.

"Are you here to mail a letter?" someone suddenly asked me. I jumped slightly. He had surprised me. He looked down at the letter in my hand and smiled at me.

"Yes." I told him, holding out my letter. "I was just addressing it."

"Where is it going?" he asked me.

"Um…" I started. I didn't really know. "Inuzuka Kiba."

"Where is he training?" he asked me.

"He was consolidated this year." I told him. "Under Maito Gai."

"Ah yes." The man said, taking the envelope from me and scribing some things on the front of it. He handed it back to me. "Just put it in that green box over there."

He pointed over to a wall with a few boxes on it. Obviously they went to different villages.

I walked over to the green box and stopped. It was now or never. It was either going to mail him a nice friendly letter or just walk away.

At this point, I wish I had mailed the first letter.

I pulled my pen out and stared at the envelope, looking directly at Kiba's name.

Bringing my pen down to the paper, I scribbled a tiny heart next to his name.

I was a girl. I could get away with stuff like that.

I dropped the letter into the box before I could stop myself. I could feel myself blushing all over.

As I walked away from the boxes, I didn't regret doing it and I kind of hoped that Kiba would notice it.


	72. Inuzuka Kiba: Unpredictable

Inuzuka Kiba; 6 Years Later

Age 18

-Unpredictable-

"To a year in the mountains!"

Gai held up his glass.

"A year in the mountains!" Chouji, Naruto and I agreed as we all clinked our glasses and drank to it.

It had been an interesting year. I had grown a lot as a ninja and, in my opinion, become very strong. Akamaru was behind me one hundred percent of the time and Mamemaru's size and strength was turning out to be more beneficial than I had ever imagined.

She never once tried to wedge herself between Akamaru and I… but she certainly was smarter than he was.

Now we all sat around in a restaurant on our way down the mountains. The chuunin exam was in just a few weeks, but I kept getting the feeling that something funky was going to happen before we reached the bottom of the mountain. I usually can sense that kind of stuff.

"Kiba, get your dog off the table!" said Naruto as he tried to push Akamaru out of the way. Akamaru was eating some of Naruto's food.

I only laughed. "Akamaru, are you going to take that from Naruto?" I said.

"Kiba, I'm not dealing with that right now." Said Akamaru as he sat down on surface of the table but next to me.

"You're no fun anymore, Akamaru." I told him.

"I'm too old to get in any fights." Akamaru sighed.

"No you're not Akamaru, don't be silly." I said.

Gai cleared his throat. "Okay…" he said. "As soon as we finish eating, we're going to have one last training session before continuing on our way! How's that sound, youthful students of mine?"

"Yes sir!" I said, but it was more in a mocking tone than an actual tone of agreement.

But Gai seemed satisfied enough with that.

I definitely preferred to have a man teacher to Kurenai. Everything seemed more…I don't know the word. Ninja-y. Manly. Whatever. And, not only did I have a man teacher, but also, there were no girls on the team. I mean, nothing against Hinata or anything…

Oh speaking of Hinata…yeah…

I think I love her.

I had only recently decided while I had been away from her for so long that she was the last thing I thought of before I went to sleep an the first thing I thought of when I got up in the morning.

I wondered how she was doing. What had happened with the whole Main House business and controversy that was going on in her family CONSTANTLY? Knowing her family, though, I doubt anything had been solved in just a short year.

I had already decided, though. Once I got back from my training I was going to tell her how I felt about her and only hoped that she hadn't hooked up with anyone while I had been away! Though…I highly doubt that. Hinata doesn't seem like that type.

And Shino! What was he up to? Oh, I have no idea. I hardly know with Shino anymore. Even when I was next to him I felt like I was a hundred miles away and now that I actually WAS a hundred miles away (give or take), it was like I was…two hundred miles away.

There were a couple of waitresses over in the corner of the room giggling.

"Do you need your water refilled?" one waitress asked me as she twiddled with her hair around her finger. She had pretty hair. It looked a lot like Hinata's.

The only thing was… a different waitress came by about every two minutes to ask me if my water needed refilling.

"No." I said. "Thanks though!" Why couldn't they just look at my glass to see that it was filled?

She shrugged and hopped away, going over to where the other waitresses were waiting and giggling. I could have easily listened in to their conversation if I felt like it, but I didn't. Instead, I diverted my attention to Naruto who was waving his hand a bit, trying to make me listen to him.

"Hey Kiba." He whispered. I leaned in. "Which one do you like the best?"

Which one? Which one?

"One what?" I asked.

"Waitress, you dolt!" he said.

"Oh I don't know." I said. "They all seem really efficient. All three of them really just want to wait on my water!"

Naruto gave me a questioning look. Obviously I hadn't given him the answer he wanted but how was I supposed to know what he wanted?

"The waitress with blond hair smells the best." I tried.

"Just…stop." Said Chouji, looking like he was going to erupt into hysterical laughter.

"Students!" Gai announced, standing up. "When you have eaten your full, meet me behind the restaurant where we will commence our training session!"

I think we were all pretty much done at that point. Except Chouji the Black Hole of course. While Naruto and I stood up, Chouji attempted to shove the rest of the things on the table in his mouth. Naruto and I stared at him in hope that maybe he'd finally realize that we were waiting ever so patiently for him, but he didn't get up until there was nothing left on the table. Well, except the plates and napkins and stuff…but he probably would have eaten those things too if given the chance.

"This training exercise will focus on an extremely important aspect of becoming a ninja." Said Gai as he kicked some rope off the ground and into his hands. "Getting up when you're down, even when you're against all odds!"

He started pacing in front of the three of us. We were actually pretty well disciplined.

"I shall tie one of you to a tree somewhere in this vast forest." Gai said, pointing to the grove of trees that was behind him. "Then, on my word, the other two must leap into the trees, locate their partner and set him free."

"Piece of cake!" I said, but I think I spoke too soon.

Gai smirked.

Yeah, definitely spoke too soon.

"At that point, it'll be a race between you three and me to get back to the top of the mountain." Gai said.

"Back to the top?!" Naruto shouted. "We're half way down!!"

"I hope you were all paying attention on the way down." Said Gai. "Because, if you don't beat me to the top then we will spend another entire year up there training for the exam."

I spoke way way WAY too soon!!

"Another year?" Akamaru said to me.

"Another YEAR?" I repeated to Gai.

"Yes!" said Gai. "To add to it all, I will begin my trek up the mountain as soon as I signal the two teammates to enter the forest to free the third so I will have a head start."

"What, you need a head start?" said Naruto.

"NO!" yelled Gai as he ran up and punched Naruto. "What did I say before I began this explanation?! This training exercise is focused on coming back after you're down and fighting against all odds! If your enemy is ahead of you, you must be able to catch up with him and beat him to the target! Am I understood?"

"Yeah." I said. "We shouldn't lose too much time finding whichever one of you two are going to be tied up because me and Mamemaru will be able to find you in a second."

Kiba and Naruto agreed.

"Kiba, don't speak too soon." Akamaru said, pawing at my leg. I picked him up. He couldn't jump up on my shoulder anymore.

"Unfortunately," Gai went on. "In the ninja world, you cannot just go around deciding who is the captured one. Missions are unpredictable! It's impossible to plan for anything!! Therefore, I have elected Kiba to be the victim!"

"WHAT?!" I yelled. I think Naruto and Chouji yelled too, but I was by far the most outraged. Not only were they definitely going to mess it up without me but it was so embarrassing to be tied up!! "Don't _I _have a say in the matter?!"

"Would you have in a say in the matter if you were captured in a REAL ninja mission?!" Gai demanded, getting more passionate than he should have been.

I guess he was right though. None of us could really answer or protest.

"You two are not to move until I return!" said Gai, grabbing me by the arm and tugged me along.

I just KNEW we were going to be stuck training in the mountain for another year because Naruto and Chouji were so incompetent without me to lead them!

"Gai, you were just bluffing about that declaration of you keeping us up here for another year?" I asked him as he led me deeper and deeper into the forest.

Stop, stop, I begged. He had to stop soon.

"Not bluffing." He said. "If you and your team can't complete such a simple and basic training exercise then my job is incomplete and I cannot show my face back in the village unless I am SURE that you can pass the chuunin exam!"

So we were to suffer because of his pride.

"Mamemaru?" I said to Mamemaru who was eagerly hopping by my side.

"Yeah?" she said, perking up. She was always so enthusiastic to help out.

"Make sure you're paying attention to where we're going." I told her. "I'm counting on YOU to lead Naruto and Chouji to me because I know they'll fail if I leave the job up to them!"

"You're trusting Mamemaru with that kind of job?" Akamaru said skeptically. "You KNOW how bad her sense of direction is. And her nose isn't even fully developed."

"I can do it!" protested Mamemaru.

"What ELSE do you suggest, Akamaru?" I said. I was painfully aware of the fact that Akamaru was absolutely correct, but I really didn't have any other choice.

I caught sight of Gai looking back at me with a raised eyebrow. He had such huge eyebrows.

"THIS looks like a good a spot as any!" Gai said as he stopped his frolicking. "Hold out your hands."

I HATED training exercises where I had to be tied up. I don't know why, but something about them always made me so embarrassed and frustrated. Maybe it's cause my sister used to tie me up all the time and put make-up on me…

He tied my wrists together and then proceeded to run around a tree until he was sure that I wouldn't be able to get out and that he would get a sufficient head start before Chouji and Naruto got to me. I felt like whining and complaining but I didn't want to be unmanly.

"Well, at least I'll be able to lead Naruto and Chouji back up the mountain once they find me." I said to Akamaru. "I can just follow our scents from this morning."

"Yes, yes…" Gai said with a sigh. "Ninja missions can be so unpredictable. It's really impossible to plan for everything."

That was the last thing I remembered.

I suddenly found myself lying on the ground with a pain in my head. It was raining and I squinted to keep the rain from falling in my eyes. Mamemaru licked my face as I sat up.

That's when I saw Naruto and Chouji both crouched over from exhaustion.

I turned around to see Gai standing up on a rock looking disappointed.

What had happened?

"Students of mine…" he said, sounding as though nothing had ever made him so depressed. "It is decided. We will spend… one more year on the mountain!"

The training was over? How? When?

That's when it hit me. One more year? What about my family? What about becoming a chuunin?

What about Hinata?


	73. Aburame Shino: Disney Land

Aburame Shino; 6 Years Later

Age 18

-Disney Land-

"Hey Jason, you just became a jounin by passing your jounin exam! What are you going to do now!"

"I'm going to Disney Land!"

We were watching television.

At Tsuma's house.

More specifically, Tsuma and I were in her room watching television.

At her house.

I evaluated the commercial I had just seen.

'Jason' came running out of the Hokage's building with a jounin vest in his hand. A reporter then walked up to him holding a microphone. After stating the obvious about his recent promotion, the reporter then asked him what he was going to do next.

Obviously, he was going to train or go on a mission.

But no. He said he was going to go to this place called 'Disney Land'.

It didn't make any sense.

"I don't understand." I said after the commercial had ended.

"What's there not to understand?" said Tsuma.

"Why Disney Land?" I said.

"It's a commercial." Said Tsuma. "You're not SUPPOSED to understand."

Now that didn't make any sense AT ALL. I thought the point of commercials was to throw a quick advertisement at the viewer and hope they that'd go out and consume. But if commercials were made on the basis of the hope that the viewer would NOT understand, wouldn't the people who sent out the advertisements just be LOSING money since they had to pay money to set up the commercials?

Tsuma gave an exasperated sigh and mumbled under her breath something about this being one of the reasons why she hated people. Perhaps I was looking too much into the commercial, but I honestly couldn't even begin to comprehend who had thought up that idea.

"Disney Land does this stuff all the time." She explained. "When someone says, 'What are you going to do next?' they get a celebrity to endorse them by saying, 'I'm going to Disney Land.'"

I looked back at the television screen.

Perhaps it was because this was one of the first times I had ever watched television, but I still didn't understand.

Tsuma introduced me to the television when I first went to her house. Of course, I knew what a television was but I had never come to actually use one. And now that I have, I can't say I'm all that impressed with its performance.

But I kept thinking back to that commercial.

I certainly would not have gone to 'Disney Land' if I were promoted. I would have trained or gone on a mission.

Speaking of which, I was far overdue for my promotion.

I expected a ninja to come by and visit me to tell me to report to the Hokage's office to receive my jounin vest. But as long as I was at Tsuma's house, they weren't going to find me.

"I have to go home now." I said.

"Why?" said Tsuma. "Now? Right now?"

For someone who hated me, she certainly never was all that enthusiastic when I left.

"I'm expecting someone." I said. "I expect to be promoted today."

"Why do you want to be a jounin so bad?"

Was that a trick question?

"I have to go." I repeated as I left her room. She didn't chase after me or anything, but it's not like I expected her to.

I went downstairs where Kokyuu was cleaning dishes.

"Oh, leaving so soon, Shino?" she said.

"Yes." I answered, going to the door.

"Shino, I think it's really great that you've become friends with Tsuma." Said Kokyuu randomly. I got this speech from her a lot.

She never really had any friends…

"She never really had any friends."

She really is a sweet girl…

"She really is a sweet girl."

It's just that no one knows it...

"It's just that no one knows it."

Because she keeps to herself all the time…

"Because she keeps to herself all the time."

"I have to go." I interrupted her before she could continue.

Kokyuu nodded and I left.

I was not Tsuma's 'friend'. It's just that somehow we ended up in the same room at the same time on occasion. She hated me like she stated on numerous accounts and I was indifferent about her.

Our house was in walking distance so I got home in a timely fashion.

"Shino, where were you?" said my father when I entered.

"I was at Tsuma and Kokyuu's house." I answered. I was tempted to tell him that I had been training, but I never lie to my father. He would know if I tried.

"Oh." Said my father.

He continued to sit there.

"Did anybody come by here?" I asked.

"Anybody?" he said.

"A ninja." I said more specifically. It's not like we got a lot of visitors so I figured 'anybody' would have been sufficient.

"No." my father replied.

I paused.

"So no one came by here telling me that I was going to be promoted?" I said.

"No." my father said.

"No one even came by here to tell me that they were going to send someone to tell me I was going to be promoted?" I said.

"No." said my father.

This couldn't have been right.

"So no one—" I began.

"Shino, you're not going to be promoted." My father interrupted.

Well that did it. I guess that was it.

"Oh." I said.

I waited for my father to do something.

"Shino, your mother is missing in action." He said suddenly.

"What?" I said.

"No one can find her." He said. "She went on a mission with the rest of our ANBU Squad and when they returned, she suddenly wasn't there."

"That's odd." I said. "I'm sure she'll turn up."

I wasn't too worried. After all, if my mother was such a good ninja that I only got to see her in intervals of less than a day between her missions then she wasn't going to just up and disappear.

I figured now was a good time to either retire to my bedroom or go off and train.

I figured maybe I'd train.

"I'm going to go train." I told my father.

"Very well." Said my father.

I went into the back yard.

I'm not one to sulk, but I must admit I was reasonably troubled that I was not a jounin. My father became a jounin when he was seventeen and my mother became a jounin when she was fourteen.

Well, I guess that made me the failure of the family since I was now eighteen and I was still not a jounin.

It would be a matter of time. I could only hope that I would be promoted before I reached my twenties because if it got to that point, it would be shameful to continue to call myself the son of my parents.

"Shino."

It was my father.

I turned around. I hadn't even begun my training, but it was already being interrupted. If things went on like this then I wouldn't be able to ever train well enough to become a jounin like my parents.

"You have a visitor." He said.

"Is it Tsuma?" I said since she tended to come over unannounced.

My father glanced behind him and then back at me. "No." he replied finally.

I went back inside the house to see a ninja that I didn't know. Of the chuunin rank.

"A-A-Aburame Shino, sir!" he said, saluting me. "The Hokage requests your audience in her office for a short meeting immediately!"

He didn't have to tell me twice.

I followed the ninja through the Hokage's building to where the Hokage's actual office was. I could have been able to do this job of working close to the Hokage as a personal assistant and bodyguard but…no. That so did not work for me.

The ninja asked me to wait as he went inside to announce me.

I waited as he opened the door.

"Miss Hoka—" he said but then he paused. "Er…Mr. Shikamaru sir, Aburame Shino is here."

Shikamaru always seemed to be there instead of the Hokage. Whenever I was receiving a mission, it was from Shikamaru. Whenever I was receiving payment, it was always from Shikamaru. Whenever I needed to speak to the Hokage, I always spoke to Shikamaru.

The ninja turned to me.

"You can go in now." He said.

I nodded at him and walked by, into the office.

Shikamaru was standing behind the desk with a jounin vest in his hand. MY jounin vest.

"Congratulations Shino." Said Shikamaru, holding out the vest. "You are now a jounin."

A certain sense of satisfaction swept over me as I took the vest from him and held it in my hands. I knew it would feel even better once I put it on.

"What are you going to do now?" Shikamaru asked.

What am I going to do now?

I was just promoted to the jounin rank.

I was now a jounin.

I could do whatever I wanted.

I looked down at my vest.

What a nice vest it was.

What WAS I going to do now?

Probably wait for a mission.

Suddenly, something clicked in my head.

"_Hey Jason, you just became a jounin by passing your jounin exam! What are you going to do now!"_

"_I'm going to Disney Land!"_

It suddenly made perfect sense. After all the trouble of passing the exam and becoming a jounin, Jason really just wanted to go someplace to have fun and relax.

Someplace like Disney Land.

Now that I understood the commercial, what was I going to do now?

I looked back at Shikamaru who looked like he might have been waiting for something.

Now that I'm a jounin, what AM I going to do now?

"I'm going to Disney Land."


	74. Hyuuga Neji: So Angry

Hyuuga Neji; 6 Years Later

Age 19

-So Angry-

I was so angry.

I needed to vent.

I needed to vent.

There's Hinata.

No…she's too easy of a target.

I went into the personal Hyuuga training grounds, took one look at the tree that stood alone in the grounds, wound up and punched it as hard as I could. The tree shook and birds poured out of its branches, flying up into the air.

How could I have not been promoted?

I had done _so _well in the tournament. Any common fool would be able to tell you that much.

Even someone who wasn't a ninja knew that I deserved to be a jounin, or at least recognized for my skill.

I hit the tree again.

But no more birds flew out.

They had already all flown away.

It had been a long time since I used fists instead of my palms.

I was so angry.

Maybe I was being a bit immature. I put my back up against the tree and slid down it so I was sitting.

I watched as the birds flew further into the distance.

"Father…I know this is the Main House's doing." I said. Though I could not think up a rational reason as to why or how the Main House would conspire with the Hokage to keep me from becoming a jounin.

"Um…Neji…?"

I closed my eyes.

What had possessed Hinata to come over here?

I looked up to see her standing over me.

How dare she stand over me.

I stood up so I was higher than she was.

"What do you want?" I said, looking down upon her.

Her eyes shifted back and forth as she cowered like a scared puppy. She didn't answer.

She came over to say something but now was too afraid to say anything.

"I thought so." I said, shaking my head in disgust.

She thought she was better than me. But she had quit being a ninja. I started walking back towards the house.

"Neji—"

Was she calling my name AGAIN?

I turned around.

"_What?_" I said angrily.

"I'm—" she stuttered. "I'm…I'm sorry…you weren't promoted…" she paused and looked down at her hands. "I thought you did well."

What was she trying to do? Get on my good side? Well, it wasn't going to work. After all this time pretending she was high and mighty compared to me just because she was born to a different mother.

I couldn't even respond to her ridiculous attempt. No matter what she did I would NEVER accept my destiny as her so-called 'protector'.

She didn't say anything more and well she didn't or else I may have overreacted and accidentally hit her instead of the tree.

I was so angry.

I could feel my hands begin to cramp up because I was clenching my fists so tightly.

I saw Lee coming up behind me.

Lee?

What was he doing here? In my house?

"Lee, what are you doing here?" I said without turning around. I was pretty sure I was just hallucinating because there is no reason why Lee would be in my house.

"So you didn't pass the jounin exam either?" Lee said.

How dare he.

"So?" I said, turning around to face him. What did he think? That he was on the same level as I was? I was far superior to him. At least he didn't pass though.

"So…" Lee shrugged. "Let's train together."

I raised an eyebrow.

"For old time's sake." He finished.

He had to have a hidden agenda. I read his expression and his body language, but it revealed nothing to me.

"You want to train with me?" I clarified finally.

"Yeah." He shrugged. "It's been too long. Five years."

I turned my head away from him, unable to look him in the eye anymore. "You kept track." I said in the most degrading tone I could muster. "That's so sad."

"Well…I always thought of you as my friend, Neji." Lee said.

I looked at him with a questioning expression.

"And it made me sad when you didn't train with us anymore."

"Lee, stop." I said.

I don't know why, but the words he was saying were…disturbing me.

"But it's been five years!" Lee said. "Didn't you ever think of those times when you, me and Tenten all trained together as a team and we went missions and entered the chuunin exam and—"

I put my hand up and Lee stopped almost immediately.

"Stop talking." I said.

"But—"

"I'll train with you…" I started. "If you stop talking."

Lee nodded.

Lee may not have been on the same level as myself, but he could still prove to be a worthy training and sparring partner. After all, our styles complimented each other. Hopefully, he had gotten more skilled than the last time I fought him. When we were fourteen.

"Neji, let's go where we always used to train back when we were on the same team!" Lee exclaimed as he skipped along.

Whatever happened to not talking?

When Lee finally stopped skipping, I got a good look at him. He was taller than me. Why was Lee taller than me? I didn't like Lee being taller than me.

We reached the training areas.

I'm not one to reminisce, but I hadn't been there in five years and it did make me feel a bit nostalgic. I glanced around the training grounds. Everything seemed so small and insignificant.

"Those were some good times." Lee sighed.

That might have been going a little too far.

"So what should we do first?" Lee asked.

I opened my mouth to respond, but Lee pretty much interjected immediately after he had asked the question.

"Let's spar!" he said.

That was ALL that was on his mind.

"Lee…have you stopped thinking about that at all in the past five years?" I asked him flatly.

"Well…" Lee said haltingly. He looked like he was searching for the right words, which was completely unlike him so that means he must have changed a lot since the last time we had really conversed. "You said you'd fight me only when I got stronger. And I think I've gotten stronger…"

I had full intentions to spar with him, but I figured I'd at least psych him up a bit so it would be more challenging. "You THINK you've gotten stronger?" I said. "Lee, if you only THINK you've gotten stronger—"

"I KNOW I've gotten stronger!" Lee corrected himself, looking completely serious.

"I don't want to bother unless you KNOW you're stronger." I said.

"I am stronger!" said Lee, striking a fighter's stance. "I'm stronger than you are!"

"Are you?" I said.

"Yes, I am!" said Lee. "And I'll prove it!"

"Then let's see." I said, getting in my stance as well.

Lee looked like he was about to attack, when he suddenly dropped his stance and looked past me.

At first, I peered at him questioningly. Then, upon turning around, I saw Tenten standing there, hiding half way behind a tree. I gave a heavy sigh at her presence. How annoying.

"Hi guys…" she said. "Are you fighting again?"

"It's just a spar!" said Lee, walking by me and over to her. "Nothing serious!"

Nothing serious? Is that the way Lee saw this fight? If he wasn't going to take me seriously than I had no business with him. I had to deal with people not taking me seriously all the time so I didn't need Lee joining in.

"Lee, I think we're done." I said.

"What?" said Lee. "We've hardly started! Strike that, we HAVEN'T started!"

I looked over at the way Tenten was looking at Lee. She didn't love me; that was for certain. She loved Lee.

In order to get away from this training area, I had to go by them both. I began walking and then stopped when I was parallel to them.

"Neji!" said Lee, sounding desperate.

"Lee, you are no stronger than when I last fought you five years ago." I said finally. "I cannot believe I even began to think you would be a worthy opponent and that you actually progressed all these years. You're the same as you always were."

"Neji, stop!" said Tenten.

"There is a REASON why you can't use ninjutsu or genjutsu." I said, ignoring Tenten. "It is not in your fate to be a ninja. If it was your destiny then you would not have been born with that impairment."

I was very disappointed by Lee.

He didn't say anything on his own behalf, and neither did Tenten.

Why was I cursed with having them as my parasitic teammates? Why were they, rank wise, on the same level as I was? I was clearly infinitely stronger than both of them.

I didn't look back at them a single time as I made my way back towards the Hyuuga complex.

I was so angry.

The only things female ninjas ever accomplished was making male ninjas worse by distracting them. That's what had happened to Lee and that's what I was certainly not going to let happen to me.

I went back into the Hyuuga training grounds. No one would bother me there.

When I reached the grounds, there was a man and his son there. I knew who they both were because they were both in the Branch House, though I did not know their names. The boy was only six years old, but he had already been burdened with the curse seal marking.

"Good afternoon, Neji!" said the man.

I don't know them, but they know me. Oh well.

"Did you receive your jounin vest today?" the boy asked me.

I looked down at him.

"No, I didn't." he said.

"Hichou, go on inside now." Said the man.

The boy shrugged and went back inside. At least he still had his innocence…

"Neji…" said the man. "I was wondering…if there was any way you could train my son, Hichou."

"Train your son?" I repeated.

"Yes." He said. "He really looks up to you, and I want him to be a great ninja like you are. He's very skilled and I feel as though you will be a good role model for him."

I can't say I've ever been called a good role model.

"I'll think about it." I said.

He bowed his head to me.

Maybe I wasn't so angry anymore.


	75. Yamanaka Ino: He's a Keeper

Yamanaka Ino; 6 Years Later

Age 18

-He's a Keeper-

I hadn't really actively attempted to set Sakura up with anyone. I hardly had time to shower between missions, let alone try to find time to get Sakura a date. I was sure she'd be fine without me though because her attitude seemed to be improving… at least, as far as _I _saw.

Being a jounin was hard work and believe me, there was plenty of it. But something that made it that much more bearable was the fact that Sasuke was always there by my side.

And, now that I was eighteen, I was officially able to date him. Even though I had been dating him for going on three years, my parents didn't have to know that. As far as they were concerned, he had only just recently asked me out on our first date, I had accepted and then I offered to bring him home for dinner! My father required that he come home for dinner.

"We should be getting ready for our mission tomorrow." Sasuke said as I brushed something white off his shoulder. Dandruff? No, not dandruff. Just something white. "We don't have time to do this…"

"Oh Sasuke, don't worry about it." I said, grabbing his collar and playing with it with a tug. I knew he hated it when I did that, but that's why I did it.

I let go of him and went over to the mirror, checking my hair one last time as he fixed the collar I had played with. We were currently over at his house, a place a spent a lot of my free time at.

No, no, no. We had never…er…you know.

Sasuke just…well, he wasn't ready. He's a lot shyer than most girls might think.

"Do you remember the story?" I asked him.

"Yeah…" he said.

"Okay." I said, spinning around. "Just remember, if my dad found out that I've been dating you for this time without telling him then he's going to immediately make assumptions."

Sasuke suddenly found interest in the floor and turned slightly red in the cheeks. He's so shy!

"Everything has to be absolutely perfect!" I repeated over and over to the point in which I think he was nauseated. But that only meant I was doing a good job drilling it into his head.

"I still don't know how you possibly kept this a secret for three years." Sasuke said.

The first thing that popped into my head was that it had been easy because there was only one set of parents to deceive. I was going to say it out loud, but I quickly caught myself before I did. That wouldn't be a smart move. I usually avoided bringing up his family as much as possible.

Instead, I smiled. "It's hard sometimes." I admitted. "But we won't have to keep it a secret anymore."

"You know…" he said, coming over to me and taking my hand. "It'll come out sooner or later."

"Hopefully, we'll all be older and be able to look back at that and laugh." I said as he brought his face close to mine. I've kissed Sasuke plenty of times, and Sasuke has kissed me plenty of times, but there was still a feeling of anticipation and excitement every time he brought me close like that. Sometimes, he pulls away at the last second to tease me, and sometimes he'd turn my head to the side and only give me a light kiss on the cheek. Then, of course, sometimes he was feeling romantic he'd give me what I wanted. I think he likes to keep me guessing so I don't come to expect anything from him.

"So…?" he said, lowering his voice. "Is it time to go?"

I looked past his shoulder at the clock.

We were supposed to be at my house fifteen minutes ago!

"Oh no!" I yelled, letting go of him and throwing my arms up in the air in surprise. I accidentally smacked him right in the nose.

He gave a little yelp and grabbed his nose.

"Oh, Sasuke, I'm sorry!" I said as he lowered his head. "I didn't mean to! Are you all right?"

"I think my nose is bleeding—" he said, standing up straighter to reveal that there was blood dripping out of his nose. Actually, it wasn't really dripping… it was more so… FLOWING out.

"I'm so sorry!" I yelled again, running into the other room to get a napkin. I came back and worked my way in past his hands and tried to stop the bleeding.

"Ow, ow, ow…" he said, pulling away slightly as I squeezed his nose.

"Don't be such a baby, Sasuke!" I said. "We're late!"

"I'll take that." He said, but I could barely understand him. He took the napkin from me and held it up to his own nose, angling his head upwards. "I think we're going to need more napkins."

"Oooh…" I said as I went to get more napkins. How could I have done such a stupid thing? Now we were going to be really late.

…And Sasuke had a bloody nose…

But that wasn't as important.

"Has it stopped yet?" I asked, throwing nearly his entire stock of napkins and paper towels in his general direction.

"What do you think?" he said.

"Sasuke…I'm so sorry!" I said. "Are you angry at me?"

He didn't answer at first.

"Sasuke?" I asked hesitantly.

"No, I'm not angry." He said, looking back at me and taking the napkin away. We both waited for his nose to start bleeding again…and it did wait for a second or two before suddenly going at it again full blast.

"Are you a hemophiliac or something!" I said as he ambushed him with napkins in attempt to do SOMETHING to stop the bleeding. I looked longingly at the clock to see that we were now eighteen minutes late. "Sasuke, you'll have to stop the bleeding on the way there! We're way too late!"

"All right all right…" he said as I dragged him to the door and flung it open.

But…I guess I did a little too much fling…

Because the door smashed right into Sasuke's forehead.

The force of the door hitting him without warning made him fall over right onto his back.

I spun around.

"Oh my god!" I exclaimed as he sat up. He had dropped the napkins and was now bleeding all over his nice shirt and he already had a big mark on his forehead from where the door had hit him. "Sasuke! Are you all right!"

"I don't think I'm going to survive the night." He said.

I practically shoved more napkins up his nose while I ran to his room to grab him another shirt. He was standing up and putting his free hand to his forehead when I came back.

"Come on, come on!" I said. "We'll just tell my dad you got those from a mission we were just on!"

I pretty much took the bloody shirt off and put the clean shirt on FOR him since he was too busy clutching his battle wounds.

Now, with a little more control, I opened the door and led Sasuke out.

I kept looking back at him in vain hope that the bleeding was stopping… or at least slowing down.

We reached my house at twenty-five passed. I looked Sasuke over. He had a huge egg on his forehead that was turning all sorts of lovely colors but at least his nose had stopped bleeding for a minute.

"Okay, are you ready?" I said, taking a deep breath.

"I guess…" he said, wiping his hands off on the napkins.

I let the air out and opened the door.

"Mom?" I called from the doorway. "Dad? I'm home!"

I wanted my parents to come to the door so it wouldn't be as if Sasuke was welcoming himself in.

"Ino!" said my mom as she came in. "We were wondering where you were! And this must be—" Her eyes widened at the sight of the lump on Sasuke's forehead. She quickly tried to pretend as though she hadn't been staring at it with her mouth gaping over like a fish. "—and this must be the famous Uchiha Sasuke that we've heard endless stories about! Won't you come in?"

"Hi Mrs. Yamanaka." He said, but he sounded really congested because of the bloody nose.

I took his arm and led him in.

"Hey mom, sorry we're late." I said. "We uh…were running behind schedule."

"It's all right!" my mother said. I knew that my dad minded though, but he would pretend as though he didn't.

She took us into the dining room and I introduced Sasuke to my dad. They shook hands, which kind of made me wince because I think my dad noticed the blood on Sasuke's hands. My father and mother sat down across from us and we sat down on the other side of the table.

"We were getting ready to send out a search party!" joked my dad but I could tell that he was annoyed.

"Haha…yeah…" I said, pretending as though I thought he was joking.

I looked at the two extra place settings.

"Mom…Dad…are you expecting someone else tonight?" I asked as I took a sip of my water.

"Oh well…we figured that Sasuke's parents were coming along." My mother said.

I nearly spit all the water all over her. Sasuke's nose suddenly exploded with more blood.

"Oh, Sasuke!" I said, quickly trying to cover him up with a napkin.

"Is something the matter, Sasuke, dear?" said my mother ignorantly. How could she NOT know about the Uchiha massacre! My mother was so stupid sometimes!

This wasn't going well at all!

Sasuke waved his hand. "No, nothing's wrong." He said. "My parents were unavailable tonight."

"Oh…that's too bad." Said my mother. "Well, I'd sure like to see them sometime."

"I would too." Said my father.

Now, he had no excuse. He SHOULD know about what happened to Sasuke's family. But I did have to applaud Sasuke for not losing his temper at them for bringing up his family.

The meal was all around very silent. Once Sasuke's nose dried up again, we were able to eat in peace. My mother began to clear the table as my father got a look on his face that suggested he was ready to start interrogation.

"So…what made you have interest in my daughter?" We hadn't rehearsed that question.

"Her tenacious ambition as a ninja." Sasuke answered. "She impressed me because she wasn't like all the other girls who only became ninjas so I would notice them."

Was he telling the truth? Or was he just saying that to impress my father?

"Yes…Ino is a very gifted ninja." My father said. "I myself wasn't a jounin until I was twenty-four. Ino?"

"Oh…yes?" I said, taking a moment out of being flattered.

"Could you give Sasuke and I a few minutes to talk?" he asked. "Man to man?"

"Um…sure!" I said, looking at Sasuke and standing up at the same time. He nodded with a confident look on his face. The bump on his head looked so silly. I left the two of them in the dining room and went into the kitchen where my mother was.

"Ino, I like that Sasuke!" she said. "He's a keeper!"

"Mom!" I said. "You've hardly talked to him! How do you know you already like him?" I didn't know what made me say something so incredibly stupid, but it had just popped out of my mouth.

"It's my woman's intuition." She said. "I can just tell that he's the right boy for you."

"How can you possibly know something like that?" I said.

"You two have a chemistry that suggested you've been close for years." She said. Uh oh, did she know? "Once you have a daughter, you'll understand, Ino. He's a keeper. He's a keeper."

He's a keeper, she said.

Well, I knew that much. I just hoped that my dad thought so too.


	76. Haruno Sakura: Acceptance

Haruno Sakura; 6 Years Later

Age 18

-Acceptance-

"Now Sakura…you're sure about this…"

"I'm positive!"

"Okay…I don't have any objections."

I took a deep breath.

I was going to become a great ninja even if it killed me. I was just lucky to have a wonderful teacher like Kakashi.

"So all that's left is introductions." Kakashi said as he gestured towards the three twelve-year-olds that were standing behind him. They were so cute! I could remember being twelve and only just graduating the academy! "Students, this is Haruno Sakura."

"Hi!" I said, waving to them.

"Sakura is going to be training with us for a little while." Kakashi said. "Why don't you all tell her your names?"

"I'm Yokozuki!" said the first kid with messy black hair. "I'm going to be the Hokage, just you see!"

Oh, he reminded me of Naruto.

"Tansei." Said the second boy. He crossed his arms and didn't make eye contact with me. I don't think he liked me. He was also very cute, for a twelve-year-old, that is.

He reminded me of Sasuke.

"I'm Youjo!" said the appointed girl on the team. I never really noticed it, but the teachers really did just TRY to put at least one girl on each team. I could tell that Youjo was watching Tansei out of the corner of her eye with a little grin on her face.

Hm…she didn't seem all that much like me…that would have been fun…

"Okay, now that that's over with, let's start training." Said Kakashi.

"Isn't each team supposed to have only THREE people on it?" Tansei said.

"Sakura was a former student of mine." Kakashi said. "She's considering being a ninja again so I offered to allow her to train with us for the day to make sure she wants to."

"So you QUIT being a ninja?" said Tansei.

"I wouldn't say QUIT!" I said, suddenly feeling as though I was on the defensive. "I just sort of discontinued my training while I'll dealt with more important matters!"

"What sort of matters?" Yokozuki asked.

I wasn't going to touch on those matters. It was a part of me that I never wanted to visit again. I wasn't going to hate Ino anymore. She deserved Sasuke for all the things she went through to win him.

No…she didn't win him.

I lost him.

"Youjo, Tansei, Yokozuki?" said Kakashi to break the silence. "Do you three want to show Sakura what you can do?"

"Yeah!" said Yokozuki. Tansei sighed and Youjo bit her lip. I don't think the two of them wanted me to be there, but at least Yokozuki seemed happy. "I'll go first since I'm the best ninja here!"

"No!" said Youjo. "Tansei's the one who graduated a the top of the class! YOU graduated at the very bottom, if I remember correctly!"

"I just don't test well!" said Yokozuki.

"Last place." Said Tansei under his breath.

Yokozuki fumed at Tansei, but Tansei didn't look like he could possibly care less no matter how hard he tried.

Wow…Tansei and Yokozuki practically WERE Sasuke and Naruto. It was kind of creepy. If only Youjo was more like me…then it would make such a funny and interesting story!

"On second thought…" Kakashi said. "I don't need you two to start fighting again so we're just going to start with some conditioning."

"Nice job, you stupid Tansei!" yelled Yokozuki.

"Let's start with a lap around the village." Said Kakashi.

With that, the three kids were gone. I looked at Kakashi.

"They're a unique trio!" I said.

He raised an eyebrow at me.

"Why aren't you running?" he said.

I laughed. Then I noticed that he looked completely serious. "Wait… I have to run too?" I said.

"You're my student, aren't you?" said Kakashi.

I raised a hand to start my argument but my head emptied. He was right. It had been a while since I had done any kind of conditioning so I didn't know what a lap around the village would do to me.

"Um…is there anyway I could start smaller?" I asked.

"One lap is as small as it gets." Kakashi reminded me.

"Oh right…" I said nervously. I cleared my throat and quickly ran off.

I figured I'd catch up with the three kids soon enough, but I didn't see them. My pace soon got very slow and I couldn't help but start walking in order to catch my breath.

That's when I saw Hinata!

I always liked Hinata. She had quit being a ninja too… a year or so earlier. I think she may have been forced into it, but she also could have been scared away from it. I never thought she made a very good ninja just because she was so nice.

"Hey Hinata!" I called, jogging over to her.

"Oh…hello Sakura." Said Hinata, hiding something behind her back.

"What's that?" I asked, leaning over to try and see.

She repositioned herself and began to blush. "Nothing…"

She still acted like a little kid! She was the same age as me but you'd never know!

"Come on, tell me!" I said, reaching by her and snatchingthe thingout of her hand.

"Oh!" she exclaimed, making a jump for them but then backing off.

It was a blank, sealed envelope. I could feel that there was something inside of it, but it would be impossible to see what unless I opened it. Now, snatching it from her was one thing but I wasn't about to open her mail.

"Is this a letter?" I asked. "To who?"

"I wasn't going to mail it…" Hinata said, nervously twiddling her fingers.

"That didn't answer my question." I smiled. I knew it was to a boy. Naruto, I bet. I always thought Hinata liked Naruto.

"Well…" Hinata said. "I was just going someplace quiet so I could write something…"

"Is it a letter to Naruto?" I asked. She blushed so I knew it was true. "I don't know why you're bothering. He's coming home in a few days."

"No…no they're not." She said. "My father…my father told me that they're staying for another year…"

"Another year?" I said, surprised. "They can do that?"

"I guess…" Hinata said. "So I just want to send a few words of encouragement to him."

She said 'HIM'! She DID have a thing for Naruto!

"Him?" I said. "And I thought you weren't going to send it!"

"It's Kiba…he was on my team…" Hinata said.

Liar! Liar!

"Okay, Hinata…" I said, giving her the face that told her I KNEW she was lying. But I wasn't going to pursue it anymore because I felt as though I had embarrassed her enough.

Then I remembered I had to run a lap!

"I have to go!" I said, quickly giving her stuff back to her. "See you later!" Hinata waved to me as I quickly ran off.

I ran by the house that Sasuke lived in. I had subconsciously taken the long route around the village just so I could go by his house. I leaned up against the fence and hoped that maybe he would wander by the window. I never saw him anymore so any glimpse, even at his turned back, for only a second would satisfy me.

Come on, Sasuke. At least walk by…

I sighed.

No! I had to stop thinking about Sasuke! He was taken now! Even though I truly believe that he and I still had a chance, I had to let him go and focus on training! I had to win him back!

"Sakura?" I heard a voice.

I looked up.

It wasn't Sasuke.

"Tenten, hi!" I said.

She looked sad.

"What's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing really…" she answered, but she quickly wiped away some stray tears that had managed to leak out. "I'm just taking a walk…"

I didn't know whether to ask her why she had been crying or if I should just pretend to not notice.

"So…do you like being a chuunin?" I asked.

She nodded. "It's okay." She said.

I couldn't hold it back any longer. "What's wrong?" I finally asked.

"I'm just feeling a little overwhelmed." She said. "I sort of miss being a genin and having Lee and Neji on my team. I mean…things were so less complicated back then."

"Things can't stay uncomplicated." I said, speaking from experience.

"I know…" she sighed. "I was just going to go and stop by the place where we always used to train. Do you…want to come?"

"Oh um…" I said, remembering once again that I should have been running. "I actually… um… am doing something right now. Sorry, though!" I felt as though I should have been with her while she was so sad.

She nodded solemnly. "Okay, that's all right." She said. "See you later, then?"

"Yeah." I said.

She walked by me, and I started running again.

The rest of the run was rather uneventful and I cut corners to return back to the spot where Kakashi, Yokozuki, Tansei and Youjo were waiting. And looked like they had been waiting for a while.

"Um…hi!" I said. "Sorry…it's been a while…"

"Sakura, may I have a word with you?" Kakashi asked.

"Oh…sure…" I said as I allowed him to lead me out of earshot of the three students.

"Sakura…" he said. "I'm going to be completely honest with you. I NEVER thought that you'd be able to succeed as a ninja."

Ow.

"And I knew that you were only doing it back then to impress Sasuke." He went on.

Double ow.

"I've seen it a hundred times before." He said. "And I have no right to tell anyone. But now that you're older and hopefully more mature, I'm hoping that you can accept it. Some people just aren't cut out for this ninja world."

I closed my eyes.

As much as I hated to believe it, he was right.

I had been distracted numerous times on a short run, all by completely irrelevant and petty things. I was never meant to be a ninja.

"I understand." I said.

"I'm sorry." Said Kakashi.

"It's all right." I said. I went back over to the three kids who were still waiting patiently. "Thank you for letting me train with you." I turned my back to them and left.

I looked back at them as they already became distracted with each other. I only hoped that Youjo would become a ninja for herself and not for Tansei or else she'd grow up to be just like me.


	77. Akimichi Chouji: Our Team Clicked

Akimichi Chouji; 6 Years Later

Age: 18

-Our Team Clicked-

"To a year in the mountains!" said Gai as he held up a glass.

I'd toast to that!

"A year in the mountains!" Naruto, Kiba and I agreed.

Well, now that we've officially been up in the mountains training for a year, we were finally going back home.

While I was excited to get home and see my friends again, I had made really good friends with Kiba and Naruto and kind of didn't want it all to end! We had some really good times up in the mountains!

On second thought, I just really really wanted to go home.

We were just eating our fill at a local restaurant that was half way down the mountain. One thing I definitely missed about home were the fine restaurants! The restaurants were okay here, but not as good as the ones back in Konoha.

"Kiba, get your dog off the table!" Naruto said suddenly as he started to push Kiba's dog off the table. He probably shouldn't do that. Akamaru's pretty old.

But Kiba didn't seem to mind.

He only laughed.

"Akamaru, are you going to take that from Naruto?" Kiba said.

Akamaru barked at Kiba.

"You're no fun anymore, Akamaru." Kiba replied.

Kiba was such an odd duck.

And Naruto wasn't exactly normal either.

Though who was I to assess their normality? I must have looked like the biggest freak of them all since I most likely doubled all of their sizes put together, including Gai's.

None of them were very big people, and then there was me.

It was uncomfortable at times. I had recently gotten a lot bigger in just a year so it made training a lot harder since I had to adjust to my changing body more than the other two did. But once the changes settled in, everything only went uphill.

"Okay…" said Gai. "As soon as we finish eating, we're going to have one last training session before continuing on our way! How's that sound, youthful students of mine?"

"Yes sir!" we all said.

Naruto and Kiba both looked like they'd be finishing up at any point so I had to be quick.

My water was running out and a waitress came over with a pitcher of water.

But, just like the other waitresses before her, she gave a dreamy sigh and looked at Kiba who was only sitting idly by with a glass filled with water.

"Do you need your water refilled?"

"No." said Kiba. "Thanks though!"

I wanted to say something about the fact that my glass was empty, but I was getting far too much amusement over the fact that Kiba had no idea that all the waitresses in this restaurant were completely smitten by his appearance.

If one more waitress came over, I was definitely going to give him a little hint as to the fact that they were just trying to make up excuses to talk to him. With his dog-like hearing, you'd expect him to be able to notice that they were all giggling in the corner of the room.

Even _I _could hear them.

"Hey Kiba." Naruto whispered. I leaned in so I could hear the conversation too. "Which one do you like the best?"

"One what?" Kiba asked obliviously.

"Waitress, you dolt!" Naruto said, sounding somewhat annoyed.

I tried to keep my laughter in, but what Kiba said next just pushed me over the edge. "Oh I don't know. They all seem really efficient. All three of them really just want to wait on my water!"

I laughed out loud, but tried to cover my mouth.

Naruto only shook his head.

"The waitress with blond hair smells the best." Kiba tried. He wasn't sure what Naruto was saying and he wasn't sure why I was laughing.

"Just…stop." I advised him between laughs.

"Students!" Gai announced randomly as he stood on his chair. I looked around the room to see that everyone was now staring at us and whispering about our strange behavior… as if anyone except Gai was being strange. "When you have eaten your full, meet me behind the restaurant where we will commence our training session!"

When we've eaten our full?

That means there's still time to eat.

I don't know why Kiba and Naruto jumped up as fast as they could.

Gai said we could eat our full so I was going to eat my full.

There was no sense in being hungry later, right?

They both waited for me as Gai threw himself a parade and marched outside. Kiba and Naruto were sort of staring at me so I began to feel self conscious but they'd understand if they were apart of my clan. I'm bigger so I have to eat more…it's part of my advanced bloodline…

When I was finished, I went with Kiba and Naruto outside.

"This training exercise will focus on an extremely important aspect of becoming a ninja." Gai said as he picked up a rope. "Getting up when you're down, even when you're against all odds!"

I already didn't like where this was going. Why would he be introducing a new concept to us on our way back down the mountain?

"I shall tie one of you to a tree somewhere in this vast forest." Gai said, looking off at a forest behind him. "Then, on my word, the other two must leap into the trees, locate their partner and set him free."

"Piece of cake!" Kiba said.

I wonder when he was going to realize that whenever he said things like that, it just gave Gai incentive to make it that much harder.

And I was right. I watched as a smirk crept across Gai's face.

"At that point, it'll be a race between you three and me to get back to the top of the mountain." Continued Gai.

"Back to the top!" Naruto yelled before I even realized what he had just said. "We're half way down!"

"I hope you were all paying attention on the way down." Gai said"Because, if you don't beat me to the top then we will spend another entire year up there training for the exam."

Another year?

…Another…year?

"Another YEAR?" said Kiba.

How could a decision like that be assessed in a single training exercise?

"Yes!" said Gai. "To add to it all, I will begin my trek up the mountain as soon as I signal the two teammates to enter the forest to free the third so I will have a head start."

"What, you need a head start?" Naruto asked him.

Almost immediately, Gai leapt foreward and punished Naruto for his insolent behavior.

"NO! What did I say before I began this explanation! This training exercise is focused on coming back after you're down and fighting against all odds! If your enemy is ahead of you, you must be able to catch up with him and beat him to the target! Am I understood?"

"Yeah." Kiba said. "We shouldn't lose too much time finding whichever one of you two are going to be tied up because me and Mamemaru will be able to find you in a second."

Oh no. Why does he say stuff like that!

"Unfortunately, in the ninja world, you cannot just go around deciding who is the captured one. Missions are unpredictable! It's impossible to plan for anything! Therefore, I have elected Kiba to be the victim!"

"WHAT!" the three of us yelled, even though I had pretty much assumed that that would be yet another twist.

"Don't _I _have a say in the matter!" Kiba asked.

"Would you have in a say in the matter if you were captured in a REAL ninja mission!" Gai said.

He had a point…but that was still way too many conditions…

"You two are not to move until I return!" said Gai as he grabbed Kiba and dragged him off.

I sighed. Only Naruto and I were there.

"I really don't want to be up here another year." I said.

"I could go either way." Naruto said.

I felt like we should have been talking strategy, but the both of us were engaged in our own thoughts. I doubted Naruto actually felt that way about staying an extra year in the mountains, but I wasn't about to tell him he was wrong.

Gai suddenly appeared up on a rock over by the edge of a cliff.

"GO!" he bellowed, striking a pose.

I think it was pretty obvious that it was essential to find Kiba first. Kiba was the fastest of the three of us and he would be able to track our way back up the mountain a lot easier.

"Chouji, hurry up!" Naruto yelled.

"I can't go faster than this…" I called back.

"Sticking together is key!" I heard a voice yell. Before I knew what was happening, a large boulder came rumbling down the mountain.

"Look out!" Naruto yelled.

Like I needed to look out. It was easier for me to just go right through the boulder instead of taking all the time and energy to dodge it.

"Chouji!" Naruto yelled as he slowed down.

"Just keep going!" I yelled at him. Obviously he had forgotten about the fact that crashing through a boulder was easy.

Naruto was still watching me. I was fine. He had to keep going. When he finally saw me, he turned and continued on his way until we reached the ledge Gai had been up on earlier.

"It'll be shorter if we climb right up!" Naruto yelled to me.

I looked up at the tall ledge.

Easy for him to say…

Naruto had small body and a low center of gravity so that made it easy for him to do things like dodge… and climb…

But then there's someone like me who couldn't even fathom doing such things.

Naruto had already started climbing, though, so I didn't have much choice.

"Ha!" came Naruto's voice above me. "We've got nothing to worry about! Gai's not even close to the top!"

"Have I taught you NOTHING!" I heard Gai yell. Didn't he say that he was going to the top of the mountain?

If I had been prepared for impact, I would have easily been able to catch Naruto or at least brace myself. But, because he literally came out of nowhere and crashed right into me, I lost my grip on the side of the mountain and proceeded to fall down the mountain.

I didn't know how far we fell. I knew that I wouldn't be hurt by the fall, but I definitely had to protect Naruto. I took most of the damage on the way down until we finally came to a stop.

I felt like I couldn't breath. Almost on cue, raindrops fell from the sky. After only a few moments, the rain began to fall more heavily.

It was almost as if we were being told by some unknown force that we had failed. Another year up in the mountains to train was inevitable. No doubt Gai was going to look at our terrible performance and fail us. If that had been a real mission then we wouldn't have rescued the prisoner and we would have returned late, empty-handed.

"AHEM!" Gai said.

I turned around to see Gai standing there with a discombobulated looking Kiba at his feet.

"Students of mine…" Gai said dramatically. "It is decided. We will spend… one more year on the mountain!"

I couldn't believe it.

One more year.

I had never imagined that Consolidation would be this hard.


	78. Rock Lee: Silence

Rock Lee; 6 Years Later

Age 19

-Silence-

Garu was coming over today…but I couldn't stop thinking about Tenten. And what had happened two nights ago. I was going to tell Garu that I couldn't see her anymore…I loved Tenten, I knew that now.

I mean…after what happened two nights ago…

I heard a knock at the door. It was probably Garu.

Here goes nothing.

I opened the door. Tenten? "Tenten!" I said.

"Hi Lee." Said Tenten.

I didn't know what to say now. "I—meant to call you…" I said. "Come in."

"Lee, I have to ask you." Tenten said, coming in. "Do you love me? Or is this just a fling?"

"I _do_ love you." I said, grabbing her hands. She wouldn't look me in the eyes.

"Do you love Garu?" she said so that I could hardly hear her.

I wanted to tell her no. I wanted to yell it. But there was a little piece of me that couldn't see Garu leave.

"I have to go." Tenten said as she began to cry. I hated it when I made girls cry. I just hated crying in general.

"Tenten, wait, please." I said, knowing she had been scared away by my silence.

But I was silent once again when I saw that Garu was coming up the front steps. What now? What could I possibly say to Tenten? I would have to tell Garu sooner or later, but I suddenly didn't feel so bold anymore.

"Hi Lee! Hi Tenten!" she hoped up the stairs and came inside. "Oh…" she said. "Am I interrupting something?"

"No." Tenten said. "Nothing at all. I was just leaving."

"Don't you want to stay for a little while?" Garu asked.

"No, that's all right." Tenten said, walking by her and out the door.

"Bye Tenten." I said quietly.

Garu spun around. "So?" she said with a big smile on her face. "You wanted to talk to me?"

Her smile…and her glow…I couldn't tell her.

"Garu…" I said. But I couldn't go on like this. I couldn't love two women at once and I definitely couldn't keep this a secret from her. So what was my solution?

I couldn't love either of them.

"Garu," I repeated.

"Yes?" she said with a laugh.

"I have to focus more on my training if I want to become a jounin." I said, realizing that I had not been called by the Hokage to be promoted. "I… can't see you anymore."

"Oh don't be silly!" giggled Garu. "We'll just cut down on our time together! I can't go an eternity without you!"

"But…" I started.

"So we'll just start seeing each other LESS." She said. "But every minute you're not training, you're going to be making it up to me, got that?"

She meant well.

"I got it." I said, not knowing how else to respond.

"All right!" she said. "Well, I've got things to do! You get to your training!" She spun around and sashayed out the door.

I had too much on my mind to train. I just wanted to get out some aggression. I needed to fight someone.

Who could I fight? Who would WANT to fight me?

What about…? No…he wouldn't…but then again…maybe he would… he was probably a jounin by now…

I hadn't even realized that I had made my way over to Neji's house entirely subconsciously. I had to feed my terrible need for nostalgia as well as my terrible need to exert some force.

I didn't even bother knocking because I knew I'd be turned away at the door.

It didn't take long to find Neji. He was quite the presence.

"Lee, what are you doing here?"

He wasn't wearing a jounin vest. I knew he'd be wearing a jounin vest if he had passed the exam. "So you didn't pass the jounin exam either?" I said.

"So?" Neji said, turning around and looking quite offended. Maybe it wasn't the best way to ask him to fight me.

"So…" I shrugged. Then again, maybe it would be. "Let's train together." Neji looked skeptical. "For old time's sake." I clarified.

"You want to train with me?" Neji said after a long pause of silence.

"Yeah." I said. "It's been too long. Five years."

"You kept track." He said in a very condescending tone. "That's so sad."

It wasn't terribly hard to subtract fourteen from nineteen. "Well…I always thought of you as my friend, Neji." I told him.

Neji looked confused.

"And it made me sad when you didn't train with us anymore." I went on.

"Lee, stop." He said finally.

"But it's been five years!" I said, a little frustrated that he didn't care that we were so far apart after being together for so long. "Didn't you ever think of those times when you, me and Tenten all trained together as a team and we went missions and entered the chuunin exam and—"

Neji put his hand up and I instinctively stopped talking even though I hadn't done that for years.

"Stop talking." He instructed.

"But—" I began.

"I'll train with you…" he said. "If you stop talking."

Sounded like a deal to me.

I was going to take Neji to that spot where Gai always used to have us train. At first, I was going to keep it a secret and a surprise, but I couldn't hold it inside me anymore because I was getting so excited about finally getting to fight him after all these years.

"Neji, let's go where we always used to train back when we were on the same team!" I said.

Neji didn't say anything or react.

He just kept walking.

What an exterior he put out.

We reached the training grounds. I had been there a few times earlier this year so it wasn't very different for me, but I could tell Neji was reminiscing slightly… to an extent… that Neji can reminisce too…

"Those were some good times." I said.

He raised an eyebrow and didn't answer. Big surprise.

"So what should we do first?" I asked. "Let's spar!"

Maybe I should have let him answer first.

"Lee…have you stopped thinking about that at all in the past five years?" Neji said.

Rrrg! He could always read me like a book!

"Well…" I said, trying to think up a good answer so I wouldn't look like an idiot. "You said you'd fight me only when I got stronger. And I think I've gotten stronger…"

"You THINK you've gotten stronger?" Neji said. "Lee, if you only THINK you've gotten stronger—"

Bad choice of words! I probably ruined my chances just then! "I KNOW I've gotten stronger!" I said.

"I don't want to bother unless you KNOW you're stronger." Neji said.

"I am stronger!" I said, getting ready to fight. "I'm stronger than you are!"

"Are you?" Neji said in a cocky fashion. I knew he was going to fight me, especially after my last comment.

"Yes, I am!" I said. "And I'll prove it!"

"Then let's see." Neji said, getting in the familiar stance that I hadn't seen for so long.

I was about to attack him, but I caught sight of someone watching us.

It was Tenten.

"Hi guys…" said Tenten. "Are you fighting again?"

"It's just a spar!" I said, quickly going over to where she was standing. "Nothing serious!"

Uh oh. Another bad choice of words on my part.

"Lee, I think we're done." Neji said.

"What?" I demanded. I needed to fight him! But I also needed to talk to Tenten! "We've hardly started! Strike that, we HAVEN'T started!"

Neji began to walk away, but he stopped.

"Neji!" I pleaded with him.

"Lee, you are no stronger than when I last fought you five years ago." Said Neji, launching into one of his famous degrading speeches. "I cannot believe I even began to think you would be a worthy opponent and that you actually progressed all these years. You're the same as you always were."

"Neji, stop!" said Tenten.

"There is a REASON why you can't use ninjutsu or genjutsu." Neji said. As soon as he said that, I felt like I had been hurt even though he hadn't physically attacked me. "It is not in your fate to be a ninja. If it was your destiny then you would not have been born with that impairment."

Impairment…

Impairment?

Neji then walked away without saying another word.

Neji and his silence.

With his silence, he had grown up to be a very bitter person. I wasn't going to be silent like Neji.

"Tenten." I said. "About earlier."

Tenten forced a laugh. "Isn't it a coincidence that all three of us came here on the same day?" she said.

"Tenten, don't change the subject." I ordered her. I had to get this out. I had to tell her that I had chosen.

"Well, what is it then?" Tenten asked, looking angry.

"This is a very hard time in my life right now." I said. "Everything is very complicated. I can't handle it all."

"I can't handle any of it." Tenten said, looking like she was going to start crying again.

"I'm sorry." I said. "I'm working to become a good ninja."

"What does this mean?" Tenten asked.

"I have to focus on my training." I said. "I've told Garu this." These words killed me to say. I really wanted to be with Tenten, but I couldn't as long as Garu stood in the way.

"Garu, Garu, Garu!" Tenten yelled angrily. "I don't want to hear her name anymore! All I want is a straight answer, Lee! You have to tell me if you love her or me!"

What was I going to say? No matter what I said, I was going to lose.

"I…"

I couldn't go on.

It was that silence.

"It's like…"

"Just…just…" Tenten started. She got up on her feet as tall as she could and placed each of her hands on my cheeks. She brought me down so she could reach me. I was glad that she was going to kiss me. Everything would come out.

She hesitated.

That's when I felt her hand on my chin as she angled my head down. I felt a small, friendly kiss on the forehead. The kind of kiss you give a child when you're leaving him for the weekend.

That's the way I felt.

"So…that's the way it is." I said, realizing that neither of us could go on like this.

"I'll wait for you." She said quietly, though I wasn't expecting her to say it. "So when Garu isn't what you imagined, I'll be here."

She looked better.

That's when she let go of me and walked away.

I didn't do anything to stop her. I was silent. I think I always will be.


	79. One Year Later

Intro; 7 Years later

Everyone is pretty sure that he or she is the center of the universe. They all see the same event in a different way. How is everyone growing up? What will their reactions to the new events in the village be?

Kiba, Naruto and Chouji have finally returned to Konoha to be greeted with drama and other issues that they didn't want to deal with upon reaching home. Hinata and Sakura have their share of competitions, while Shikamaru settles into his new job. Shino and Lee have complicated problems that they sort out together as Tenten makes the most important decision of her lifetime. All the while, Neji's having third wheel syndrome on his mission with Sasuke and Ino when terrible things go wrong.

The four teams of ninjas that we have come to know and love can't stay eighteen forever. Eventually, everyone grows up.

Will Kiba make something happen?

Will Neji ever get promoted?

Will Shikamaru do a good job?

Will Sakura find a love of her own?

Will Ino lay off Sasuke a bit?

Will Chouji keep all his friends?

Will Tenten regret her choice?

Will Shino find his niche in life?

Will Hinata finally be happy?

Will Sasuke get some control of his relationship?

Will Lee ever make a decision?

Will Naruto ever get through to his beloved?

All these questions, and many more, will be answered. One year at a time.


	80. Inuzuka Kiba: Some Mix Ups

Inuzuka Kiba; 7 Years Later

Age 19

-Some Mix Ups-

Two years. Two LONG years and we were finally returning to Konoha! I don't think I could have been able to stay up there for a third year but luckily, this time around, Naruto, Chouji and I had been able to pass Gai's challenge with NO problem!

"I don't want to carry you anymore!" I heard Mamemaru whine from my side. I looked down to see that Akamaru was riding on top of her.

"You'll carry me and like it!" Akamaru said. He had been getting kind of old and senile lately so I decided to relieve her from carrying duty and do that myself.

"This chuunin exam will be no problem this time around!" I announced to Akamaru and Mamemaru.

"Yeah, I know!" said Naruto as if I was talking to him. "I am SO ready for it!"

"Do you think we'll be able to pass?" Chouji asked me. I craned my neck to look at him. He was much taller than me.

Much wider too.

"Of course we will!" I told him as I repressed the urge to smack him.

The three of us walked through the streets of Konoha. We were catching up together and wanted to go visit some people to see how much they missed us.

Bet they missed us a lot.

I smelled a few familiar smells in the air. At least, I THINK they were familiar because I hadn't smelled them for a while.

One of them, though, I definitely recognized.

"Sakura!" I heard Naruto yell next to me a little louder than he needed to. Sakura looked up. I don't know what she had been doing. Maybe she was looking in the window of some store. I don't know. Hinata was with her though.

"Naruto?" she questioned, looking up. We got closer and the two girls smiled at us and turned to us. "So you're finally back?"

"Welcome back…" Hinata said quietly with an almost giddy smile. I kind of wish Sakura wasn't there right now. Naruto and Chouji can be there because they're my pals. Same with Akamaru. Mamemaru would have to leave because she's a girl though.

Her eyes looked up at Chouji who, while his size had become a regular thing that Naruto and I saw everyday, was much larger than he had been before we left.

She chose not to comment on him.

"Kiba?" Sakura asked me, looking away from Chouji and right at me. "Is that you?"

I nodded at her.

"Who else would it be?" I asked her. Sakura looked like she was stuttering for a second. I felt a little insulted that she didn't remember me.

"I was so worried about you Kiba…" Hinata said, blushing. I was proud of myself for picking up on the fact that she was blushing.

Over the past year or some, my two teammates, Naruto and Chouji have clued me in that I am quite the handsome one.

I knew that. I didn't need them to tell me that.

However, they pointed out many instances of girls trying to get my attention when I hadn't noticed so I had somewhat honed my skills to the art of extremely ambiguous girl anecdotes.

"Hinata…" I started, going into deep thought. I had rehearsed what to say to her when I got back a million times but because SAKURA was there, I couldn't say it.

"Yeah Kiba?" Hinata started. I looked at her. I wasn't wrong in the mountains. I missed her a lot.

Two years away from her only made me like her more and more until I realized that I loved her. However, I wasn't sure if it was real love because she hadn't been there.

Now that she was there in front of me, I was sure that my feelings were right.

Sakura started whispering to Hinata and, rather than listening to them, I turned to Naruto and Chouji.

"So what do you think?" Naruto asked. "Should I ask Sakura out on a date now or wait for her to ask me?"

"What if she doesn't ask you?" Chouji asked.

"Oh come on…" Naruto said. "I've been gone for two years! She probably misses me so much!"

"I'm going to ask Hinata out." I said bluntly. I wanted to get it out in the open so that neither of them would try before me.

"Like we didn't know you were going to." Naruto said with a sly laugh.

Okay…maybe I had been talking about her a lot lately.

For the past few months.

Everyday.

All day.

But just in case they were planning on stabbing me in the back!

We all turned back around in unison.

"Kiba, what…" started Hinata but Sakura suddenly interrupted her.

"Kiba, are you doing anything later today?" she asked me.

I thought for a second. If Hinata accepted my request, yes. If she didn't, then I wouldn't be doing anything.

I shrugged her.

"I might be." I told her.

"Well what would you say to a date?" she asked.

A date! I didn't even HAVE to ask!

"…all right!" I said. I wanted to sound suave and cool at this moment but I guess my plans were dashed.

I looked over at Hinata who was blushing madly but didn't appear happy.

Had Sakura forced her into it?

Sakura looked surprised and elbowed Hinata slightly.

"That wasn't so hard!" she said with a grin.

"Ha ha…" said Hinata, a very sad look on her face. "Yeah…"

I couldn't ignore that sad face.

"Hinata, are you unhappy about it?" I asked her. She looked up at me, I could see tears in her eyes.

"No." she managed to spit out. "Have a good time. I have to go."

She then turned around and walked off very quickly.

"Have a good time?" I asked out loud.

"A good time?" Sakura said. "I'll make sure we have a GREAT time."

"WE?" I demanded of her.

"I thought you said you like Hinata…" Akamaru said to me.

"I'm confused…" Mamemaru said.

"You're not the only one!" I told her.

"Kiba!" Naruto yelled. "How could you!"

There was a huge misunderstanding.

I put Akamaru down and ran off to go and find Hinata. She hadn't gone TOO far and I could obviously track her down quick enough.

Following her scent, I was easily able to find her outside the Hyuuga complex. She was crying.

Boy am I smooth! We're not even dating yet and I've already made her cry!

"Hinata…" I said, approaching her slowly. She must not have noticed me come up because she jumped when I called her name.

"Don't worry about me, Kiba." She said. "Go have fun with Sakura. I was just overreacting."

"Have fun with Sakura?" I laughed. Why did she think I had accepted Sakura's invitation? "Not likely!"

"Then why are you two dating now?" she asked, looking up at me. I sat down next to her, thinking back to what I had rehearsed using Akamaru as Hinata.

"It was a misunderstanding!" I told her. "I thought that she was asking me out for you."

Hinata let out one of her famous really loud gasps and turned her head directly at me.

"For…me?" she asked, almost as if she couldn't believe it. Which is crazy. I mean, seriously…who else?

Since I had said that all in my mind and didn't want to say it again, I just nodded at her with a casual shrug.

"I thought about you a lot while I was training." I admitted to her.

It was kind of embarrassing telling this but I told myself I'd do it and there was no turning back now!

"R-r-really!" Hinata asked me, stuttering and all. I nodded again.

"I couldn't help it." I continued. "There were so many girls all over the place but all I thought about was you."

"Kiba…" Hinata said.

"I knew I liked you but then I convinced myself that I liked you more than I liked a friend. And then that I REALLY liked you. Until eventually…I thought that maybe I…"

I stopped. Didn't want to say it quite yet. I looked at Hinata to see what she thought.

I don't know what I was expecting. Her head was down and I couldn't see her face. However, I could see the tears dripping off her chin.

I'm not very good at this asking out thing. But I had rehearsed it SO differently!

"I'm sorry for making you cry, Hinata." I told her, as I went to stand up. She grabbed my hand closest to her and gave it a small tug. I sat back down and glanced at her just as she looked up. She had a big smile on your face.

Did this mean she was crying out of happiness?

Who DOES that?

"No Kiba." She said to me. "It's just that…I missed you so much and the truth is…" she paused, looking at me with a red face. "The truth is…that I've…"

She trailed off. I knew what she was going to say but I guess the immature side of me wanted to hear her say it.

"Kiba…" she said. I looked up at her, trying to hide the big grin on my face. "I really like you too."

I still had my hand clutched in hers so I squeezed it tighter.

I then thought back to my rehearsed speech. I decided to do it anyway.

"So Hinata…" I said. "Will you go out with me?"

Hinata nodded. "Yes…"

Good! It went exactly according to plan!


	81. Hyuuga Neji: Third Wheel

Hyuuga Neji; 7 Years Later

Age 20

-Third Wheel-

Three weeks.

Three weeks I was stuck captured by the enemy on what should have been a very short mission. We had even completed the mission. It was all because our leader needed to check something out.

I don't know why I followed Sasuke. Maybe because he outranked me or maybe because I told that he was the leader but for whatever reason it was, I followed him and I got captured with him.

This is why, when you lead an important mission, you should never bring your significant other.

Sasuke had managed to help us escape, however so I give him slight credit. Not much however as he got us captured in the first place.

Escaping was the hard part but now, we were just putting as much distance as we could away from the place but we approached a wall. Sasuke, with ease, vaulted Ino right over it and then looked at me.

"I can do it myself." I told him. I don't need the same help as a woman.

"Okay fine." Said Sasuke as if he had reason to be offended. "I wasn't going to help you anyway."

That's typical. I didn't know Sasuke was prejudiced against the Branch House too. He WOULD side with the Main House.

Why wasn't I the leader of this mission? If I were, we would be home right now.

I guess it's because of some inner conspiracy against me keeping me from becoming a Jounin that I was unable to lead Sasuke and Ino who WERE both jounins. I suppose the Hokage saw it in her heart to give me a REAL mission and spare me from trivial chuunin missions.

I jumped up on top of the wall without Sasuke's help and then, I jumped down, landing right next to Ino.

I had no gripes with her at the moment. Except for the fact that she distracts Sasuke and he distracts her right back.

Sasuke followed right behind me and landed on the ground, coming over to us in a bit of a huddle.

"We should probably give ourselves a little bit of distance from this place as much as possible before we rest for the night." Sasuke said. Of course we should do that. But why rest when we can probably make it back to Konoha by morning? Especially since we're probably being looked for.

"I say we just travel all night until we get back to Konoha." I told him. "They are no doubt going to come looking for us."

"Exactly." Said Sasuke, looking at me. He knew he had more power than I did in this situation. I deserved it more. "That's why we should give ourselves a little distance."

"I'd rather not run all night either." Ino said suddenly, voicing her opinion.

"It's settled then." Sasuke decided. As much as I hated it, it was a vote that I had lost. Especially since they were both Jounins. And Sasuke was the leader.

I bet Ino only took Sasuke's side because he's Sasuke.

We continued traveling at a good pace. Sasuke always tried to stay ahead but sometimes, I had to put him back in his place by passing him.

During one of the times where he was ahead, he stopped abruptly. Ino and I were forced to stop as well.

"This is a good spot." He proclaimed right then and there. Ino nodded and agreed predictably and then they both turned and stared at me.

I bet they just wanted to hear me agree with them.

Ino ran over to Sasuke and the two of them started being all lovey-dovey.

"I thought we weren't going to get out of there!" she said, nuzzling him. In the time she took to nuzzle him, we could be even further along and maybe even home. "Thank you for rescuing me."

"I wasn't going to leave you behind…" The two of them continued in their obnoxious love fest and just when I thought they were going to just remove all their clothes and start making love right then and there, I cleared my throat to remind them that I was there.

Of course, they didn't hear me so I decided to occupy myself with something else. Maybe I'll set up camp.

I wasn't setting up camp for more than five seconds before I realized I couldn't do it alone. So I coughed louder to get their attention again.

"I hate to ruin the…moment…" I told them. "But we should set up camp _together_."

That separated them.

"We'll do it quickly." Said Sasuke, coming over toward me. But not before, of course, kissing her.

It's not that I'm against public displays of affection but when there are THREE people and two of them are constantly making love and stuff, it kind of leaves the third person out.

Sasuke sent Ino off to go and collect some large leaves as he and I mutually came to the conclusion that we would bend the trees over for the base.

"How about these trees?" I asked him, pointing to a set of trees that were small enough to bend over.

"They might break." Sasuke said. "I think they need to be slightly bigger."

If they're any bigger, we won't be able to bend them over…

But since he was the leader, I listened to him. We found a pair of trees that were sized to Sasuke's standards.

"Definitely these." He said, grabbing onto one of them to pull it over. I wasn't about to exert myself pointlessly.

I observed Sasuke try fruitless to bend his tree until Ino came over.

"Need a little help?" I heard her ask.

You know, it's not like I'm invisible. Had I been working on mine too, I'd want some help too.

"I…can handle it…" Sasuke said, obviously far from the truth.

"Doesn't look like you can." Ino said, reaching out to help him. I leaned up against my tree as the two of them pulled the tree to the ground.

How they expected to tie it down was beyond me.

They began making out again so I turned away and pretended to be busy rather than watching them.

I'm always left alone.

But I guess I'm used to it.

I suddenly a loud snapping noise and I looked over to see Sasuke on the ground clutching his shoulder.

"Sasuke!" I heard Ino practically scream. "I'm SO sorry!"

"No…" Sasuke told her. It was OBVIOUSLY a lie. "It's fine. It doesn't hurt that much."

I came over. I bet they didn't tie it down tight enough and it hit him in the arm or something.

"You must not have tied it tight enough." I told them, observing their patheticness.

"We didn't tie it at all." Ino told me, looking at Sasuke. I looked at him too.

Or more specifically, his upper arm. It was obviously broken.

How? I don't know.

"Do you think the bone might have snapped?" I asked Sasuke. He's probably know more than the two of us.

"It's broken!" Ino yelled irrationally. "No it's not!"

This is why you never go on a mission with someone you love.

"Yeah…" Sasuke lied. "It's fine…"

You don't lie about how well you feel. It's never a good idea.

Sasuke went to stand up. Not a good idea.

"Sit down Sasuke!" Ino yelled, pulling desperately down on his shirt.

"Listen to your girlfriend, Sasuke." I told him. Maybe he'd listen to me? I don't know. "I'm not a medic but even I can tell by looking at you that you broke your collarbone."

"I probably just pulled a muscle." He said, standing up and leaning up against a tree. Not too smart, are you Sasuke?

Ino followed after him, but I stayed put in the spot I was in. She proceeded to take his shirt off as if that proved anything. I think she might have wanted to wrap his arm up or something. I wasn't paying attention to what they were saying though.

Girl ninjas, even really talented ones, only serve to get in the way.

I suddenly saw Ino looking over at me with a sort of accusing glare.

"You could help you know." She told me.

Does she think she's better than me, commanding me around like this? Because she's a jounin and I'm a chuunin.

It's just a name, really.

I walked over to where Sasuke had lost all the color in his face and was now sweating profusely.

"Sasuke needs to be put out of his pain." I said. It was so obvious. We were probably going to have to carry him anyway so why should be in pain while we do it?

"I'm fine, just give me a minute to shake it off." Sasuke insisted.

I shook my head at him. Stop trying to impress women.

With a quick and skilled ninja move to the neck, I was able to knock Sasuke into a state of unconsciousness.

"There." I said, looking at Ino. "We can carry him better this way."

"…Carry him?" Ino asked me, standing up. Did that not occur to her or something? Or maybe she thought that it was the male ninja's job to do all the hard work.

"Yes." I told her, looking around for something to put him on. "We'll have to carry him back to Konoha tonight. He needs medical attention."

I walked away from the two of them, in search of a long piece of wood or something.

Now we get to go back tonight and I don't have to spend the night in the woods with the two lovebirds.

The two JOUNIN lovebirds.


	82. Nara Shikamaru: This Hat

Nara Shikamaru; 7 Years Later

Age 19

-This Hat-

I hate this hat.

It doesn't fit over my hair.

I have been the Hokage for about a week and a half and already I was decreeing a new law.

"Raido!" I said, beckoning him over. He had been around to help me out while I had been working for the previous Hokage but now that I was the Hokage, I wished for him to continue his services.

It didn't take long for him to at my side.

I wouldn't call him a slave but he served his purposes quickly and efficiently. And with little or no complaining.

Probably because he doesn't want to lose his job.

"Yes Mr. Hokage?" he asked. You'd think he'd resent the fact that I'm still a teenager and I outrank him immensely.

"As Hokage, my next new law is to make it so that I don't have to wear this hat." I told him. He took out a pen and began writing it down on his notebook.

"So, is this on the same level of importance three hours of alone time each day?" he asked me.

How ignorant can you be? I'm a man who values my alone time and am not about to put it on the same level as my desire to not have to wear this stupid hat.

"No." I told him. "It would be more on the level of me never having an unsharpened pencil."

I hate having to sharpen pencils.

"I know how much you hate having to sharpen pencils." He said. Sometimes I think he can read my mind. But I guess I've been working with him long enough so that if he couldn't fool the ignorant into thinking that he can read my mind, I'd be disappointed.

Did I make a lot of laws? Yes.

Did I make a lot of unnecessary laws? Yes.

Was I taking advantage of being Hokage? So far, I'd say yes. But I was new to the job so I had an excuse.

I originally wasn't too thrilled with the idea of being Hokage but so far, it hasn't been that bad.

"You can go now." I told him. "You're cutting into my third hour."

I guess I could have waited to tell him that, but I would have forgotten until I had to put the hat back on.

I took the hat off and tossed it aside. It can be decoration.

I never intended to do any work during my alone time. I merely looked at the stacks of papers on my desk that I would have to get to. On the top was Hyuuga Neji's file.

Upon accepting my job as Hokage, the previous Hokage took me aside and explained something to me.

She explained the ridiculousness that is the Hyuuga family.

Apparently, Neji is to never achieve more than the chuunin rank. I had been curious as to why he had never been promoted but it all came clear to me now. It's a big conspiracy that his family has.

I guess since I'm not a Hyuuga, I'll never understand exactly why but I can't be bothered with it. All I know is that when Neji takes the jounin exam, I am to tell him that he needs more training.

And nothing else.

He deserved a high rank so much more than I did.

And not only that, he wanted it more.

I suddenly heard a knock at my door. I still had forty-five minutes left.

The door opened up and in walked Raido, Shino and Lee.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Hokage." Raido explained. "But they didn't want to wait forty-five minutes to talk to you."

"It's okay, Raido." I told him. What good is three hours of alone time when people barge in during it?

I gave him the signal that his presence was not needed and he back out the door.

"So what is so important that you needed to see me so desperately?" I asked them, trying to sound patient.

"The guy at the door told me that you were busy!" Lee said, looking sad. "I was willing to come back later!"

"I wasn't." Shino said. He looked around.

"So…?" I led him.

"I resign from my teaching position." Shino said. I sighed long and hard.

"You've only been teaching for two days." I reminded him.

I guess he didn't realize how long the process of assigning him students was.

"I know." He said. "Teaching is not for me."

"And your students?" I asked him.

"I had to fail them." He said. I groaned, suddenly feeling a headache coming on.

"Shino, you don't do that." I told him.

"That's why he's here." Shino said, pointing over at Lee who only stood there.

His face kind of frightened me. Why did he look like that?

"Yeah!" said Lee, snapping back into reality.

"All right, explain to me." I told them.

"Well, Shino has students that he doesn't want…" started Lee. "And I have students that I don't want…"

"What's wrong with your students?" I asked Lee.

I thought I had assigned them well. Skill-wise, personality-wise. Everything.

"I'm not a strict teacher…" Lee began. "But none of them were very good at all."

I nodded.

"The three lowest ranked students in the academy…" Lee said with a cringe.

"They were three students who couldn't use ninjutsu and genjutsu." I explained to him. "I figured you could work with them."

"Yes…" Lee continued. "I was unaware of that."

…

"So what happened?" I asked.

"I sent them back to the academy for another year." Lee told me.

I took a deep breath and looked at the two of them for a minute.

"Okay." I told them. "Here's the plan."

"I don't want Lee's students." Shino reminded me. "I don't want to teach anymore."

"I know." I told him. I don't like it when people underestimate me.

Shino adjusted his sunglasses.

I was really curious about those.

"All right." I said, bringing a folder out of a drawer. It was the one that had the teachers and students listed on it. I shifted through until I found Lee's page and Shino's page.

I went though my desk and pulled out one of my sharpened pencils.

"Lee, I'm giving you Shino's students." I told him, handing him Shino's piece of paper. "They will need to be informed of this and that they didn't really fail."

"Great!" Lee cheered.

"Yes…" I continued. "And Shino…you're done."

"Good." He said, turning to leave.

"What about my old students?" Lee asked. What about them?

"There is another teacher who failed her students." I explained to him. "I will give them to her but if they are as bad as you say, they will probably be failed anyway."

"Okay!" Lee said, giving me a thumbs up.

"You can go now." I told him.

"Thanks Shikamaru!" he said. "I mean…thanks Mr. Hokage, sir!"

That felt kind of weird.

Lee then turned to leave. I looked at the clock.

Good. It only took seven minutes. I still have thirty-eight.

"Oh!" Lee said, stopping before he left.

"Yes?" I said. Why wouldn't he just leave?

Lee bent down and picked up the hat that I had discarded.

"The Hokage must always wear his Hokage hat!" he said, tossing it to me like a Frisbee.

Stupid idiot's aim was entirely off and it hit a stack of papers next to my desk.

How troublesome.

He threw his hands over his mouth.

"Oops!" he said. "Sorry!"

"It's okay, Lee…" I told him, shooing him away. "Just go."

He bowed to me and then stepped out the door.

I leaned over to pick up all the fallen papers and kicked the Hokage hat aside.

I hate this hat.


	83. Haruno Sakura: Never Meant To

Haruno Sakura; 7 Years Later

Age 19

Never Meant To-

I hadn't been able to treat myself to a 'girls night out' in a while. I used to revel in the days where I could gather all my closest friends together and go out for a night on the town.

Usually I went with Ino but the two of us haven't been particularly close lately. Not only that but I haven't even seen her around for a while.

Come to think of it, I hadn't seen Sasuke around either.

I didn't want to think about the things they could possibly be doing.

Tenten was too involved in her fling with Lee that everyone knew about except Lee's girlfriend to have time for anyone else.

So that only left Hinata.

She wasn't the most interesting of my girl friends but it was better than going alone, I suppose.

I met her downtown in front of some store. There were plenty of stores downtown and we could easily find many things to do.

Maybe we could go out and get some clothes or some shoes.

Or a makeover.

After all, we were both the single women of the group so we needed to look good for any potential guys we might hook up with.

Yes…I have officially given up on Sasuke.

I have finally come to realize and accept that Ino loves Sasuke and Sasuke loves Ino.

While I will never fully forget Sasuke, I just will stop perusing him.

At least until he and Ino break up.

Then he's free game for me again.

Hinata didn't talk much as we walked along the sidewalk. All she did was look around and sigh. I looked over at her but then I noticed something out of the corner of my eye.

Were those the shoes I was going to buy the other day but they were too expensive but now they were on SALE!

"Hinata!" I yelled, pointing at the window so that she could get a glimpse of their wonder. "Look!"

We both were only able to marvel at the sheer beauty of the shoes for a second before I heard my name being called.

"Sakura!" came the voice. I looked up only to see Naruto with two strange men behind him.

One of them was huge and one of them was sexy.

Very sexy.

Who was he?

But Naruto was back?

"Naruto?" I asked, just to make sure it was him.

I smiled.

I had to admit, I was happy to see the idiot.

"So you're finally back?" I said.

"Welcome back…" I heard Hinata's voice say next to me quietly. I doubt they even heard her.

I looked over at the two people with Naruto. The large one…he looked familiar…

Oh! He was Chouji! He's gotten bigger!

I looked over at the other person. He also looked familiar. Then I recognized the red triangle thingys on his cheeks.

That COULDN'T be Kiba!

"Kiba?" I had to ask. "Is that you?"

He nodded.

"Who else would it be?" he answered. Even his voice was sexy.

He was better looking than Sasuke!

I couldn't even contain myself! I bet I was outwardly showing signs of being attracted to him. I didn't care. I didn't even care if I was staring, he didn't even seem to notice!

"I was so worried about you Kiba…" Hinata told him. Of course she was worried about him. She was on his team.

Bet she didn't realize how hot he was going to be.

Well, I definitely didn't know. If I had, I would have been chasing after HIM the whole time!

"Hinata…" Kiba said back. Just hearing his voice made me melt.

"Yeah Kiba?" Hinata said again. I think it was time to make my moves before Hinata did.

Not like she would…but now that Kiba looks the way he does, things might be different.

I leaned over to Hinata.

"Oh my god, Hinata…" I whispered to her. "Could he get anymore good looking?"

"Who, Kiba?" Hinata asked.

"No, Chouji." I joked with her. "Of course Kiba!"

"Oh…" said Hinata, a slight blush in her face. She didn't want to admit that she found him hot too.

"I think I'm going to ask him out." I told her. I'd look pretty good linked arms with him, I'll tell you that.

"What?" Hinata asked, looking upset.

I knew it. She wanted to ask him out too. Well, I claimed him first.

"Sorry Hinata." I told her with a shrug.

He was fair game.

We all turned back around in unison.

"Kiba, what…" Hinata started. Excuse me, but I called him first.

"Kiba, are you doing anything later today?" I interjected before Hinata could ruin my chances.

He thought for a minute. He was thinking about it, that was a good sign. A lot better than Sasuke's usual immediate refusal.

"I might be." He said.

Good. Good.

"Well what would you say to a date?" I continued.

"…All right!" he said. And he actually sounded excited! Score!

I thought it would be harder but I'm not complaining. I gave Hinata a slight shove.

"That wasn't so hard!" I laughed to her.

"Ha ha…" Hinata laughed. She was upset because I got to him first. "Yeah…"

"Hinata, are you unhappy about it?" Kiba asked her.

…

I really wish he hadn't asked her that. But why should her happiness about my happiness matter?

"No." she said. What a good friend she is! I'd have to set her up with Naruto or something later. "Have a good time. I have to go."

She turned and ran off. She was upset. But she was supporting me.

"Have a good time?" Kiba said. I turned my attention back to him.

SO good looking.

"A good time?" I told him with a smirk. "I'll make sure we have a GREAT time."

Heh heh…that sounded good.

"WE?" Kiba suddenly said.

Oh no…

"You're not the only one!" Kiba said.

Did he think that we were going on a triple date or something? Maybe I should have said that I'll have a great time or something…

"Kiba!" Naruto yelled, crying tears. "How could you!"

He still wanted me. Poor fool.

Suddenly, I looked back over at Kiba to see that he was running off. Running away?

I KNEW it was too good to be true.

I looked over at Naruto and Chouji.

Chouji hadn't said a single word that I had heard. He might have said something but who listens to Chouji?

Naruto's tears were gone.

"Ha!" he yelled, pointing at Kiba's disappearing figure. "He DOES still love her!"

"Naruto, I don't know if that's very nice to just ANNOUNCE that to everyone." Said Chouji.

"So what?" said Naruto.

Still? Love? He didn't love me! Wait, what had we just been talking about! Didn't he just accept a date with ME!

Kiba, I mean! Not Naruto and definitely not Chouji!

I don't think I was the ONLY one who saw that!

"Hey, didn't Kiba said he'd go on a date with me!" I demanded.

"Who cares about Kiba?" said Naruto. "Come on, Sakura! Come on a date with me! Or… not a date! Just a welcome home dinner!"

The last thing I wanted to do was go to a welcome home dinner with Naruto, especially after I had just been rejected for the ten millionth time in my life!

He was hardly taller than me!

He didn't look different at all!

He probably wasn't any stronger either!

He wasn't sexy like Kiba!

I felt so duped.

Why did these things always happen to me?

I felt the urge to crawl under a rock.

Maybe I was just never meant to find love.


	84. Yamanaka Ino: I Hurt Him

Yamanaka Ino; 7 Years Later

Age 19

-I Hurt Him-

I admit, our escape hadn't been the most graceful or efficient escape we had ever done, but as we ran away from the building we had previously been held in, I couldn't help but smile. A certain satisfaction came over me.

In front of me, I could see Sasuke approaching a wall and next to me, Neji slowed down. Sasuke stopped in front of the wall with his hands cupped and without even changing my speed at all, I leapt on his hands and sprung myself over the wall. I was now officially in the clear.

I stood next to the wall and waited for the other two to jump over. They were taking longer than they should be considering we were escaping and all they should be doing is jumping over the wall.

Just as I was beginning to get worried and think they had been recaptured, I saw Neji perched on top of the wall. He jumped down and landed gracefully next to me.

Sasuke easily leapt up and landed on the wall. I saw him sit there for a minute. Maybe he was scoping stuff out or thinking of a plan.

Then, without warning he let himself fall from the wall, landing with a bit less grace than Neji.

"We should probably give ourselves a little bit of distance from this place as much as possible before we rest for the night." Sasuke said. He had been appointed the leader of our mission a little while back so he got to call the shots. I knew this made Neji angry because I could see him glare whenever Sasuke gave him an order.

But then again, Neji's ALWAYS glaring.

"I say we just travel all night until we get back to Konoha." Neji said. "They are no doubt going to come looking for us."

"Exactly." Said Sasuke with a bit of a glare. "That's why we should give ourselves a little distance."

"I'd rather not run all night either." I said. Neji glared at me too.

"It's settled then." Sasuke said, looking at Neji. The three of us starting running a bit more. I was already a bit tired from having run so much already tonight. Not only that but none of us had really gotten much sleep while we were captured but I wanted to keep that as far from my memory as possible. The only part I choose to remember is the comforting sight of Sasuke's face when he came to rescue me.

The mission had been a success despite the three of our captures. We basically just had to retrieve some information for our village, which we were able to do. We had another teammate with us at the time and because he left early to deliver the information, he wasn't captured.

Every time I got to work with Sasuke, I was happy. We made an excellent team and were mostly successful on most of our missions. However, for some reason, the Hokage found it necessary to stick Neji in on this mission. He really didn't belong here though. This was definitely a jounin mission and Neji, while very skilled, is only a chuunin. It could have been a dangerous decision but it ended up working out in the end.

After a little bit of running, Sasuke slowed down and eventually stopped.

"This is a good spot." He said, gesturing to the clearing we were in. I nodded and agreed. We both simultaneously looked at Neji. I could tell he wanted to disagree but it really wasn't his place.

I ran over to Sasuke and jumped into his arms, giving him a big hug.

"I thought we weren't going to get out of there!" I told him as he caught me. I settled down into a much calmer hug and lowered my head onto his shoulder. "Thank you for rescuing me."

"I wasn't going to leave you behind…" he said, wrapping his arms around me and gently putting one of his hands on the back of my neck. We had only been captured for a couple of weeks but I had missed everything about him. His face, his voice, his touch and his kiss.

I went in to give him our first kiss in a long but then I was interrupted by something.

Neji stood off to the side clearing his throat loudly.

"I hate to ruin the…moment…" he said with an edge to his voice. "But we should set up camp _together_."

Sasuke dropped his arms and then grabbed my shoulders, pushing me away slightly.

"We'll do it quickly." Said Sasuke as he planted a small kiss on my lips and then turned to walk over to Neji.

That wasn't enough. Thanks for completely ruining the mood, Neji.

Setting up camp wasn't something that was necessarily HARD but it was annoying. It consisted of bending small trees over and tying them down. Then, putting some coverings on top.

According to Sasuke, it was my job to collect the leaves while the men did all the heavy duty things. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Sasuke struggling with a tree that was maybe a little too thick for him to bend. I dropped my leaves in a pile and walked over to him.

"Need a little help?" I asked, my hands on my hips.

"I…can handle it…" Sasuke said, out of breath, as he pulled the tree down.

"Doesn't look like you can." I said, stepping in front of him and putting my hands over his and pulling the tree down. With one, it was impossible but with two, it proved to be a fairly easy task.

I twisted my neck around and kissed him just as the tree was pulled down. Usually, at this point, someone came over and tied it down. However, Neji was off trying to pull an even bigger tree down by himself and no doubt wanted to tie it down by himself too.

"Who's going to tie it down?" I asked him, noticing our predicament.

"See, I was gong to have YOU do it." Sasuke told me.

I laughed a little at him.

"I don't even have a rope with me right now." I told him. We were going to have to let go of the tree anyway to tie it down. "Well, no use holding it anymore, right Sasuke?"

I let go of the hold I had on it and the tree snapped back slightly. That's when I realized I might have let it go a bit too early. Sasuke had been holding onto it and go kind of a whiplash effect before he let go as well.

He grabbed his shoulder, letting out a small yell and recoiled in pain, kneeling to the ground.

"Sasuke!" I yelled, falling down beside him. "I'm SO sorry!"

"No…" he said, tears of pain in his eyes. "It's fine. It doesn't hurt that much."

Neji came over.

"You must not have tied it tight enough." He said as if he knew what happened.

"We didn't tie it at all." I told him as I pulled Sasuke in close to me. I felt so horrible for harming him. Neji glared down at Sasuke.

"Do you think the bone might have snapped?" he asked him, not even bending down.

I broke Sasuke's arm! Now I'll never be able to live with myself anymore!

"It's broken!" I asked. "No it's not!"

"Yeah…" he said weakly, the color fading from his face. "It's fine…"

"Sit down Sasuke!" I told him, pulling gently on his shirt, not wanting to injure him more.

"Listen to your girlfriend, Sasuke." Said Neji, turning away. "I'm not a medic but even I can tell by looking at you that you broke your collarbone."

Oh no! And it's his right hand too! Sasuke's right-handed! What will he do!

"I probably just pulled a muscle." Sasuke said, breaking free of my weak grasp and standing up. He walked over to a tree and leaned up against it, wincing as he moved.

I followed after him. We didn't have any first-aid supplies or medics so we'd have to make due. We couldn't just leave Sasuke's arm alone this whole time.

"I think we should get your shirt off your arm." I told him, helping him gently to remove his shirt.

Removing it from his left arm was easy, he pretty much did it by himself though I could tell that the pain made him weaker. I slipped it over his head and then proceeded to, as carefully as I could, take it off his other arm.

I didn't see his face grimace at all while I did it so I must have done a good job.

Should he be wearing a cast?

"Should we…" I started, not sure how to word it. "Wrap your shirt around your arm? Give you a sling?"

He took his shirt from me with his uninjured arm and put it by his side. He was obviously trying to be a man or something.

"Sasuke, stop being a baby." I told him, giving him a light hit on the side.

Of course, fate has it that I hit the wrong side of him. Watching his pained expression made me cringe.

"I'm sorry!" I apologized. His face was now completely pale. I looked around as if something in my immediate surroundings would help. I saw Neji over there standing there staring at us. Not helping at all.

Why was he even here?

Oh yeah…because he was captured with the rest of us.

"You could help you know." I told him. I felt kind of helpless and the fact that it was MY fault he was like this didn't help.

Neji looked at me for a minute, not moving. Then he stood up abruptly and made his way over to the two of us.

"Sasuke needs to be put out of his pain." He said, sounding unenthused.

"I'm fine, just give me a minute to shake it off." Sasuke insisted.

Neji then gave Sasuke a quick chop on the back of his neck with his hand, knocking him out like a light.

I must have been slightly flustered because I found myself at a loss for words.

"There." Neji said. "We can carry him better this way."

"…Carry him?" I asked.

"Yes." Neji said, looking around. "We'll have to carry him back to Konoha tonight. He needs medical attention."

I groaned slightly to myself. Now, not only would I not get to rest, but I had to travel all through the night carrying Sasuke. All the while, my only company being Neji.

It's a good thing I love Sasuke as much as I do. Otherwise, I would have considered leaving him here.


	85. Akimichi Chouji: This Drama

Akimichi Chouji; 7 Years Later

Age 19

-This Drama-

Last year, we hadn't done too well when Gai gave us a test.

He wanted to make sure that we were ready for the chuunin exam so, under very extreme circumstances, we were supposed to complete a mission on the spot.

How had we done?

Well, we'll just say that we weren't quite ready for the exam.

This year, Gai practically replicated the test.

We had done quite well this time around and beat him back up to the top of the mountain.

Then, upon returning home to report to the Hokage, we were all greeted with a special surprise.

Shikamaru!

He was the Hokage!

At the age of nineteen, Shikamaru was the Hokage while I had been training up in the mountains for two years as a genin.

He told me that he had only recently been promoted to that position, but Shikamaru had always been sort of the backseat Hokage.

By the way he went on about the previous Hokage, she was even lazier than he was.

Shikamaru promised me we'd celebrate sometime since I missed his introduction speech.

I think he just might be the very youngest Hokage our village has ever seen!

So now that that was all over and done with, Kiba, Naruto and I all strolled down the streets of Konoha getting ourselves reacquainted with our surroundings. It was fun to point out things that we remembered, but even more fun to point out the things that had changed.

Even though we had only spent two years together, these two felt like my life long friends.

"This chuunin exam will be no problem this time around!" Kiba said suddenly since no one else was saying anything.

He tended to do things like that.

"Yeah, I know!" Naruto said. "I am SO ready for it!"

Naruto and Kiba were usually fully capable of keeping a conversation going on their own just fine and did not require for me to join in, but sometimes I liked to contribute.

"Do you think we'll be able to pass?" I asked.

"Of course we will!" said Kiba immediately, almost as if he was offended that I would bring something like that up. Naruto looked like he had been ready to say the same thing.

That was why I didn't normally add to the conversation.

It's not that they always shot me down whenever I said something, it was just that the both of them usually had the same opinions on things while mine vastly differed.

Just when I was about to change what I had just said, Naruto became distracted.

"Sakura!" he yelled excitedly.

He waved to two figures off down the road. The two came closer to reveal themselves as Hinata and Sakura, two girls I didn't have very strong relationships with.

However, they were the two girls that Kiba and Naruto spoke endlessly about.

Naruto had loved Sakura ever since we were in the academy.

Kiba had only just recently developed a thing for Hinata but he certainly was enthusiastic about it.

Me?

I wasn't really concerned with any of that.

I was focusing hard on becoming a good ninja like Shikamaru and Ino.

I mean, especially since I had gone so long with NOT focusing my energy on ninjaness.

"Naruto?" Sakura said once they had caught up to us. "So you're finally back?"

Naruto only stood there with his mouth gaping open. I felt like nudging him to hurry up and say something to her.

I could tell that she was staring at me slightly because I had gotten so big in the past two years and I suddenly felt self-conscious. I was relieved when her eyes wandered downwards to Kiba.

"Kiba?" said Sakura, sounding surprised. "Is that you?"

It's no secret to anyone that Kiba has gotten…er… well, let's just say he's gone through puberty in all the RIGHT ways.

"Who else would it be?" Kiba said.

Unfortunately for him, he's the most oblivious person on the planet so, while most men his age would be gawking at themselves in the mirror, Kiba still has no idea that every single girl we'd ever meet would be swooning over his mere presence.

I don't doubt that Kiba is fully aware of his good looks, but I just don't think he realizes what they can do for him.

I looked at Naruto who wasn't being proactive about asking Sakura out on a date.

Then I looked at Kiba who wasn't being proactive about asking Hinata out on a date.

Should I be doing something to push them along? Both of them so obviously wanted to ask them out but neither of them were doing a thing to make it happen.

That's when Naruto turned as around to tell us something.

"So what do you think?" Naruto said. "Should I ask Sakura out on a date now or wait for her to ask me?"

I would think Naruto would have a clue by now.

"What if she doesn't ask you?" I said in the nicest possible way, trying not to say right out that Sakura would never ask him out in a million years and he was being a fool for believing it.

"Oh come on…" said Naruto. "I've been gone for two years! She probably misses me so much!"

I rolled my eyes.

He wasn't going to get anywhere with that attitude.

Then I looked at Kiba who appeared as though he was thinking about saying something.

"I'm going to ask Hinata out." He said.

"Like we didn't know you were going to." Said Naruto.

We were both thinking it, but only Naruto would say it.

"Kiba, what…" Hinata began suddenly as the three of us turned around.

I realized that maybe it was a little rude that we had just turned our backs so we could talk about them.

"Kiba, are you doing anything later today?" Sakura interrupted.

Naruto's mouth dropped to the floor.

"I might be." Kiba said.

He let out a small gasp.

"Well what would you say to a date?" she asked.

Even I had to gasp.

"…All right!" Kiba said.

…What? Sakura and Kiba?

Whatever happened to Sakura and Naruto?

Or Hinata and Kiba?

"That wasn't so hard!" said Sakura to Hinata.

"Ha ha…" said Hinata. "Yeah…"

"Hinata, are you unhappy about it?" asked Kiba.

"No." Hinata said. "Have a good time. I have to go."

Hinata ran off.

I was still a little confused.

Kiba, Sakura and Naruto had a short exchange that clarified everything…to an extent.

Apparently, it had all been just one big misunderstanding.

It ended with Kiba running off after Hinata.

"Ha!" Naruto cheered. "He DOES still love her!"

Now, I know that Kiba had never been too secretive about his feelings towards Hinata, but it was pretty obvious that Sakura had just developed a crush on him. And, for Naruto to just scream this to the world probably made Sakura feel stupid for trying to ask him out.

Him being Kiba, not Naruto.

"Naruto, I don't know if that's very nice to just ANNOUNCE that to everyone." I said.

"So what?"

He raised an eyebrow at me.

So I avoided eye contact. There was no getting through Naruto's thick skull when it came to getting Sakura to come around and go on a date with him.

"Hey, didn't Kiba said he'd go on a date with me!" said Sakura.

"Who cares about Kiba?" said Naruto. "Come on, Sakura! Come on a date with me! Or…not a date! Just a welcome home dinner!"

I don't know if now was really the best time after Sakura had just gotten shot down by Kiba.

But I guess Naruto thought she'd fall for that.

She wasn't going to fall for that.

Argh! I just got back! I didn't need this drama!


	86. Tenten: A Distraction

Tenten; 7 Years Later

Age 20

-A Distraction-

So many things haunted me at night.

Things that most people wouldn't give a second thought, but to me, they stayed and clung onto me.

First of all, the things Neji had always told me from the very first time I was put on the same team as him.

You know, his endless shpeals about female ninjas. I was finally beginning to understand what he was saying.

Females really DIDN'T have any rights to be ninjas.

Not everyone can be a Tsunade…

Or a Yamanaka Ino…

The other thing I always thought about was…Lee…

I had never thought that…no.

I really needed to stop thinking about him. He's had the same girlfriend for years and I had no right to try to step between them anymore. I just had to let him be.

So this morning, I got up out of bed and got dressed just like every other morning.

I was all alone in my apartment.

I didn't live with my parents anymore.

I opened up my closet and looked at the chuunin vest hanging on the back of the door.

It was time to stop pretending to be a ninja.

I had originally wanted to be a great ninja, but then my motives switched to impressing Neji.

I guess I sort of lost track of myself after that.

Now I knew it was pointless.

So I shut the closet without taking it. From this day forth, I wasn't a ninja anymore.

In addition, I also had to forget about Lee.

I didn't eat breakfast.

I only went outside and decided to go for a walk. Was I supposed to tell someone about resigning? Or did it simply just HAPPEN?

Where was everyone?

Neji was away on a mission with Ino and Sasuke. I knew that much. But the three of them had been gone for almost a month and I guess I had begun to worry.

A search party or two had been sent out, but I figured it was pretty useless to look for them. At this point, they were either going to come back or they weren't.

But I knew they'd come back. After all, Neji and Sasuke aren't exactly pushovers.

Neither is Ino…

I guess it'll always be hard for me to see Ino as such a great ninja. I wanted to be there.

I wondered where Hinata and Sakura were?

I stopped in front of the Hyuuga complex.

Should I go to the door?

What if Neji was there?

He and I had never really patched things up.

Actually, now that I think about it, the last time I talked to him was over a year ago when he had discouraged Lee from continuing his training because he claimed that Lee was not getting any better as a ninja.

Since then, Lee has become a jounin.

And Neji?

Well, he's still a chuunin.

As much as I hated myself for it, I sort of liked that. Neji had finally been put in his place.

Maybe next time he'd think twice about ridiculing Lee. Or anyone for that matter.

That's when I saw Lee.

Should I call out to him?

Should I pretend I don't notice him?

Should I quickly dodge behind a corner until he passes by and then run off, avoiding him for the rest of my life?

Too late.

He saw me.

"Hey Tenten!" he said with a wave.

Last year, I had made a decision. I would not love Lee. I would forget about him.

I would leave him and his girlfriend alone. Since then, I've slowly been torn apart.

"Hi Lee." I said with a smile. The smile was not for friendly purposes, it was just because I got happy when I saw him.

But…there was nothing between us.

I did not love Lee.

"What's up?" said Lee, coming over to me.

"Not much right now." I said, trying to sound as casual as possible, continuing to smile.

What was I supposed to say?

Lee, I'm PINING over you!

Lee, PLEASE be my boyfriend!

Lee, I quit being a ninja!

No, he didn't need to hear that stuff.

So I just left it at that and continued to smile, waiting for him to fill in the silence.

"Well, it was nice talk to you." Said Lee, taking a step towards me.

My heart started pounding so I crossed my arms in attempt to muffle the sound a bit. Even though I knew, of course, that he definitely couldn't hear it no matter how loud it was.

I cleared my throat, also trying to drown out the sound.

"I'll talk to you later, I guess." I said even though I really didn't want him to leave. Ever.

Before I knew what he was doing, he reached out and hugged me. It's not like it was any sort of love hug or anything…

And it wasn't ME who initiated it!

He hugged me first…

But I kept my arms crossed to keep myself from clinging onto him so he couldn't leave.

He did leave, though. He walked away from me without another word.

I tried to keep myself from crying as I covered my face, in fear that someone might see me.

But who would care?

Lee had moved on.

I watched him as he ran over to Aburame Shino and started talking to him, unaffected by the conversation that had made me so emotional.

Why was I the only one who couldn't let go?

Then again, there were plenty of other people like me. Sakura couldn't let go of Sasuke while Naruto couldn't let go of Sakura.

How could I possibly go about alleviating all this unbearable pain? There was no one to talk to.

I needed to distract myself.

I went into a local coffee shop and searched for some guy… ANY guy who was there by himself.

There was an attractive young man sitting by the window reading a newspaper. I cleared my throat and sat down in the seat across from him.

"Hi," I said.

He looked up at me, then back to his newspaper, and then up again. He put his newspaper down.

"Hi." He said.

Sure, I could like this guy. I could like ANY guy. I just had to get over Lee.

"I'm Tenten." I said with a smile.

"I'm Nakiwa." He said. "Nakiwa Kare."

That's a mouthful…

"So…you here by yourself?" I asked.

He nodded, looking around with satisfaction.

What was I supposed to do now? I was so stupid for thinking that this would get me somewhere. I wasn't distracted from Lee, I just wanted him more now.

"Hey, you want to stick around?" Nakiwa asked.

"Oh, sure." I said, trying to stay happy.

"Let me buy you something." Said Nakiwa.

"Oh all right." I said.

I still wanted Lee.

Nakiwa stood up and walked up to the counter where he could order something. I felt bad now. How could I lead this man into believing I was interested in him when I had only come in to the shop to get my mind of another guy?

Then I reevaluated and decided that maybe he wouldn't care at all.

He came back and put a cup of coffee on the table.

"So how old are you?" I asked him, just trying to start a conversation.

"Eighteen." He answered.

Um…oh, I was older than him.

Then again, I'm older than Lee. But only by a couple of months.

"Me too." I lied. I didn't want him to feel uncomfortable by knowing I was actually twenty years old.

But why would that make him uncomfortable?

I guess I could try to make this work…

After all, Kare Tenten sounded much better than Rock Tenten.


	87. Aburame Shino: She Hates Everyone

Aburame Shino; 7 Years Later

Age 19

She Hates Everyone-

About ten minutes following my decision to become a teacher, I suddenly realized that it was one of the stupidest things I have ever done.

What had made me think that I would make a good teacher?

While I didn't hate people to the extent that Tsuma did, I certainly didn't LIKE people.

I tried to stick it out and figured I'd nominate them for the chuunin exam as soon as possible and hope they got promoted or die in the Forest of Death but that exam is so far away…

So I had to fail them.

Even though one of them was an exceptional ninja and graduated as the second best ninja in the class, I couldn't train them.

None of them were Aburames so I didn't even know how to go about training them.

So, before the Hokage… Shikamaru… could go and assign me a new group of students for next year, I was going to go and tell him that I would refuse and just fail all the students he attempted to assign me.

"Hey Shino!" I heard.

I looked up.

There's Lee.

Why is Lee calling to me?

"What's up?"

More importantly, why is Lee asking me 'what's up'?

"I'm going to the Hokage's office." I said since that's what was up.

"Me too!" said Lee, sounding overly excited. Why was he talking to me? I hardly knew him. "How come?"

Even though I figured I didn't HAVE to tell him, it's not like it would do any harm if I did tell him. "Because I have three students that I was teaching…" I said, but then I paused. I didn't know how to say this elegantly. "And I don't want to teach them anymore."

Well, I guess there was no way to say it elegantly.

"Wouldn't you know it Shino?" said Lee. "I'm doing the exact same thing! We can walk together!"

Lee didn't want to be a teacher? From the little I knew about him, I knew he really really wanted to be a teacher.

"Whatever." I said.

I didn't care if Lee walked with me, as long as he didn't try to create conversation or small talk.

"Why don't you want to teach your students anymore?" Lee said, just for the sake of creating conversation or small talk. Or both…at the same time.

"It's not THEM." I said, as much as I DIDN'T feel like answering. "I just don't want to teach anymore."

Lee nodded and then slowly stopped.

"Hey Shino!" he said loudly and suddenly. "What if I took YOUR students!"

I didn't care. But Shikamaru might. "We'll have to talk that over with the Hokage."

"We WILL." Said Lee as if I didn't want it to happen. I didn't care, as long as they weren't MY responsibility anymore.

We entered the Hokage's building and a ninja was standing outside the office.

"I'm sorry, but the Hokage is busy." He said.

"But we MUST see him now!" said Lee desperately.

"I'm sorry…" the ninja said. I decided not to say anything. Just glare and remind him who's boss.

He looked at me briefly and, although he couldn't see my eyes, I'm sure he could tell I was glaring. He gave a defeated sigh and leaned over to open the door to the Hokage's office.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Hokage." Said the ninja to Shikamaru who was obviously sitting inside doing something Hokage-ish. "But they didn't want to wait forty-five minutes to talk to you."

He didn't have to TELL him that.

"It's okay, Raido." Shikamaru said as he shooed the ninja away.

When the ninja was gone, Shikamaru looked at us, waiting for someone to say something. That person certainly wasn't going to be me so I only waited for Lee to begin.

"So what is so important that you needed to see me so desperately?" Shikamaru said.

"The guy at the door told me that you were busy!" said Lee. "I was willing to come back later!"

No. No, Lee. You don't SAY that. We're already here and we have his attention. There's no point in bothering him and then leaving only so we can bother him on some future date.

"I wasn't." I said, referring to the comment Lee had made.

"So…?" Shikamaru said.

I waited for Lee, but he didn't say anything.

"I resign from my teaching position." I said, realizing that Lee wasn't going to take initiative.

Shikamaru gave a long, heavy and slightly annoyed sigh. "You've only been teaching for two days." He said.

I was quite aware that I had been teaching for two days. Painfully aware of it, as a matter of fact. But that still didn't take away from the fact that I had absolutely no gift when it came to teaching and wondered what I had been smoking when I qualified myself to be a teacher.

"I know." I said. "Teaching is not for me."

"And your students?" Shikamaru said.

"I had to fail them." I replied.

Shikamaru groaned.

"Shino, you don't do that." He said, rubbing his head slightly.

"That's why he's here." I said, pointing at Lee. I was slightly offended that Shikamaru didn't believe that I hadn't thought all this through before I had failed my students. Even though…well, never mind.

"Yeah!" said Lee.

"All right, explain to me." Said Shikamaru.

"Well, Shino has students that he doesn't want…" started Lee. "And I have students that I don't want…"

"What's wrong with your students?" Shikamaru interrupted.

"I'm not a strict teacher…but none of them were very good at all. The three lowest ranked students in the academy…"

"They were three students who couldn't use ninjutsu and genjutsu." Shikamaru said. "I figured you could work with them."

"Yes…I was unaware of that."

"So what happened?"

"I sent them back to the academy for another year."

"Okay." Said Shikamaru after a moment's pause. "Here's the plan."

He better not try to give me Lee's students. I didn't want to teach anymore and I most certainly wasn't going to do it anyway with the three lowest ranked students in the class. "I don't want Lee's students." I said, just in case he was thinking that I wanted them. "I don't want to teach anymore."

"I know." Shikamaru said in a condescending tone.

I pushed my sunglasses closer to my eyes to make sure no one could see my eyes.

Shikamaru fiddled through folders and papers on his desk and in his drawer. He really should be more organized and these processes would go faster. "All right." He muttered as he threw some papers with our pictures on them on his desk and grabbed a pencil. "Lee, I'm giving you Shino's students." He said, handing Lee my paper. "They will need to be informed of this and that they didn't really fail."

"Great!" Lee cheered.

"Yes…" he went on. "And Shino…"

He better not give me Lee's students.

"You're done."

"Good." I said, not entirely meaning to say that out loud.

"What about my old students?" Lee asked Shikamaru.

I decided that I was above the conclusion of this conversation so I dismissed myself.

Well, now that I wasn't going to be a teacher, what was I going to do? Become apart of ANBU like my mother?

Speaking of which, my mother was never found after her mission last year. I get the feeling that she's still alive somewhere, but if she is, she's certainly not making herself known.

Unfortunately, no one else on the ANBU Squad had the same thoughts as I did. Not even my own father believes that she's still alive. Though, no one really seemed all that affected by her apparent death, not pausing for a moment from their ongoing missions to even have a memorial service for her.

What could be expected, though?

She was only an Aburame.

"Shino." I heard.

Please, don't be Lee.

I turned around to see Tsuma standing there. She had been in the jounin exam earlier that month and was expecting her vest any day.

"Yes?" I said. "Did you become a jounin?"

"No." said Tsuma.

"You could try again next year." I said.

Tsuma was playing around with her shirt.

"I hate the Hokage." She said.

"You hate everyone." I reminded her.

"I hate you too." She said.

"I know." I said.


	88. Hyuuga Hinata: Too Late

Hyuuga Hinata; 7 Years Later

Age 19

-Too Late-

I didn't do much these days. I admit, I hang around the house a lot all day waiting for Kiba to return home… but I've come to realize that that's more than unhealthy.

I really wanted to go out and do things. But Kiba had been gone for going on two years and I can't say I've been out having fun more times than I could count up on one hand. That definitely wasn't healthy.

My father was really edgy these days. He normally didn't want me to leave the Hyuuga complex for reasons that he wouldn't explain.

I wondered if it had anything to do with the fact that Neji hadn't returned from his mission when he was scheduled to return over two weeks ago. Then I figured…well, really, why would that come to upset him? He's never been all that partial to Neji.

No one really had…

I certainly wasn't a fan of his. But it's not like he was all that partial to me either.

And, while the halls did seem a little lighter without Neji around to cast shadows, part of me hoped that nothing was wrong and that his mission was going all right.

So I was a little relieved when I got a call from Sakura asking me if I wanted to go and do something.

I met up with her downtown. She looked good. I think she gave up on her aspirations to return to being a ninja because she had started to grow her hair out again. I think she grew it out for herself now, and not for Sasuke.

I let her do most of the talking like I always did. A lot of what she said just went in one ear and out the other as my mind wandered. I was thinking about Kiba and if he would come back this year. I hoped against everything that Gai wouldn't keep him…them… up there for another year.

"Hinata!" Sakura suddenly yelled, grabbing my arm and jumping up and down. She pointed at a pair of shoes that were in a window and were marked down to half off. "Look!"

The shoes were so beautiful…but they were way to glamorous for me. Sakura would be able to wear them… though… not me.

"Sakura!" I suddenly heard.

Was that Naruto?

I turned around, and so did Sakura.

Sure enough, there was Naruto with two friends. One of which I immediately recognized as Chouji.

The other took me a minute.

That was…Kiba?

"Naruto?" said Sakura, sounding just as shocked that they were back so suddenly without any announcement. "So you're finally back?"

I had to say something. "Welcome back…" I said nervously, though I don't think any of them heard me. Except for Kiba, I knew he heard me.

I could feel my face burning up.

Kiba was so…handsome.

"Kiba?" Sakura said. "Is that you?"

He nodded. I couldn't look at his face anymore. I was getting more and more embarrassed. But the thing was…I didn't even know why.

"Who else would it be?" Kiba said.

I looked at Sakura. She looked completely head over heels for Kiba just out of nowhere. She probably realized that Kiba had gotten so handsome too… though it was hard not to notice, especially for Sakura. After all, she had spent most of her life thus far chasing after Sasuke just because he was a 'hot guy' in her book.

I blinked and looked at Kiba.

What should I say? It's been two years! He was waiting for me to say something first, I know it!

"I was so worried about you Kiba…" I said.

Kiba didn't answer at first. He just smiled a beautiful smile. "Hinata…" he began.

"Yeah Kiba?" I said, trying not to sound too eager.

Suddenly, Sakura grabbed my arm again and spun me around. She wanted to say something to me in private.

"Oh my god, Hinata…" she whispered with a tone of excitement. "Could he get anymore good looking?"

I knew she was talking about Kiba.

"Who, Kiba?" I asked anyway.

"No, Chouji." Sakura said.

Chouji?

"Of course Kiba!" Sakura laughed.

She had been joking.

"Oh…" I said, my face getting red again. I knew all along that Sakura liked him from the moment he returned, but I suddenly got the feeling that she was going to…

"I think I'm going to ask him out."

I knew it! I knew it!

"What?" I said.

"Sorry Hinata." Sakura said.

I couldn't let her…

"Kiba, what…" I started.

"Kiba, are you doing anything later today?" Sakura interrupted.

Oh no. She asked him out on a date. I was too slow! I was so stupid. I had all that time to ask Kiba out and I spoiled everything…

"I might be." He said.

Might be? I felt my heart sink into my stomach.

"Well what would you say to a date?" Sakura asked.

How could she? She KNEW I liked him! Then again, how could she know? It's not like I've ever told anyone.

But I wasn't too worried. I knew Kiba didn't like her.

"…All right!" he said.

Or did I?

"That wasn't so hard!" Sakura said, nudging me.

"Ha ha…" I said, trying not to show up upset I was. "Yeah…"

"Hinata, are you unhappy about it?" Kiba asked.

Of course I was unhappy. But if I really did love Kiba then I shouldn't try to make his life so difficult by competing over him. After all, if he loved Sakura then what right did I have to stand in his way?

"No." I said. I could feel tears forming in my eyes. I didn't want everyone to know. I was so embarrassed. "Have a good time. I have to go."

I quickly hurried off. It turned into a run as soon as I was far enough away.

I fell onto my front steps and buried my face in my hands. I couldn't stop crying. Three years of waiting, WASTED! Why hadn't I told him I loved him when I had the chance? Now look at me. I was a wreck.

I couldn't contain myself. I was so upset. Words couldn't even describe the pain I was feeling.

"Hinata…" I heard. I jumped and looked up to see Kiba standing over me.

"Don't worry about me, Kiba." I said, wiping the tears from my eyes. He was probably just wondering why I had left so early when he only just got back today. "Go have fun with Sakura. I was just overreacting."

"Have fun with Sakura?" Kiba laughed. "Not likely!"

That didn't make any sense. "Then why are you two dating now?" I asked.

Kiba was smiling. He sat down next to me. He certainly did look stronger and much bigger. His body was amazing and his face was even more striking. I felt almost as if he hadn't left at all and all of this had just happened over night.

"It was a misunderstanding!" Kiba said. "I thought that she was asking me out for you."

I gasped.

"For…me?" I said. This means that he…did want to go out with me?

Kiba shrugged very casually as if people asked him out for me all the time.

"I thought about you a lot while I was training." He said.

I didn't know what to say. "R-r-really!" I said, trying not to stutter but it just came out. He nodded.

"I couldn't help it." he said. "There were so many girls all over the place but all I thought about was you."

"Kiba…" I said, not knowing what else I could possibly say.

"I knew I liked you but then I convinced myself that I liked you more than I liked a friend. And then that I REALLY liked you. Until eventually…I thought that maybe I…"

'Maybe I…'

Maybe I what?

He trailed off and didn't say anything for a moment.

Should I say something?

"I'm sorry for making you cry, Hinata." Kiba said, standing up. How could he be leaving? We still had so much to say. I grabbed his hand before he left and held on to it. He sat down.

It was time for me to say something. I couldn't say quiet forever.

"No Kiba." I said, not letting go of his hand. "It's just that…I missed you so much and the truth is…" I couldn't believe I finally got the courage to say this. "The truth is…that I've…"

I swallowed hard.

It was too early to use the word 'love' though I've known it for a long time.

"Kiba…" I tried again. "I really like you too."

Kiba squeezed my hand tightly.

"So Hinata…" he said with a smile on his face. "Will you go out with me?"

I nodded. "Yes…" I said with a slight sigh.

Kiss me, Kiba. Kiss me.

I waited. He didn't kiss me.

I'd wait for that kiss.


	89. Uchiha Sasuke: Pain

Uchiha Sasuke; 7 Years Later

Age 19

-Pain-

Well, at least nothing else could go wrong at this point.

After an unexpected and long stay at our advisory's…er… lair… or whatever he'd like to call it… we finally managed to escape.

Everyone would like to argue that it was my fault that we got caught in the first place and I wasn't going to deny it.

But what was I supposed to do?

Leave Ino behind?

We weren't in the clear yet and I led my team of Ino and Neji over to what seemed to be a dead end. I stood in front of the wall and put my hands out for Ino to use as footing. She jumped over.

"I can do it myself." Said Neji as if I had offered to help him jump over the wall too even though I obviously hadn't.

"Okay fine." I said. "I wasn't going to help you anyway."

He really needed to be put in his place. I was the leader of this mission and he was only a chuunin.

He quite easily jumped over the wall and landed with such grace to the point in which I almost was impressed but I wasn't at the last second because I knew I could do better.

I jumped up over, lost my balance on something and almost fell over, but caught myself at the last second. I don't think either of them noticed, though. Either that or they both did a good job in pretending they didn't notice.

I went over to them to devise a strategy.

"We should probably give ourselves a little bit of distance from this place as much as possible before we rest for the night." I said.

Neji looked angry with my decision. And, even though I technically, whatever I said was what would happen, I still liked to hear out my teammates just in case they might present a more reasonable solution to the problem. But Neji tended to be counter productive and rather negative.

"I say we just travel all night until we get back to Konoha." Neji said. "They are no doubt going to come looking for us."

"Exactly." I said. We had just escaped from a prison so we were in no shape to just go gallivanting off into the night until we finally wandered back to Konoha. "That's why we should give ourselves a little distance."

"I'd rather not run all night either." Ino agreed with me.

"It's settled then." I said. Not only was I team leader, but I liked Ino better than Neji. A lot better than Neji.

I gestured for Ino and Neji to follow me and they did.

Why was Neji even on this mission? It was an important JOUNIN mission. A special A-rank mission. Chuunins never went on special A-rank missions. It must have been some kind of mistake or something…

But, even though we had a chuunin on our team, as far as I knew, our mission had been a success. The fourth member of our party had made it back all right and returned the information to the Hokage. With the information, she managed to intervene before the village decided to wage an attack against our village.

Ino had fallen behind and had gotten captured early in the mission. Neji wanted to leave, but I wouldn't do that. Ino was the only woman I had ever loved and there was no way I was going to just LEAVE her there.

So, since I was team leader, I ordered Neji to come with me back to rescue her.

Of course… that didn't work out too well.

But in the end, everything was just fine so looking back on it now to point out our mistakes would be pointless.

I had decided we had gone far enough and stopped at a good spot.

"This is a good spot." I said. I looked at Neji and waited for him to disagree just for the sake of disagreeing, but he didn't.

That's when Ino ran over and hugged me.

"I thought we weren't going to get out of there!" Ino said, settling comfortably in my arms. "Thank you for rescuing me."

"I wasn't going to leave you behind…" I said, holding her tightly.

I had missed her truly but I believe that this time away from her almost strengthened my feelings for her because I realized just how much I did need her. She went in to kiss me but I suddenly heard Neji clearing his throat.

I looked at him.

How dare he.

"I hate to ruin the…moment…" he said with an edge to his voice. "But we should set up camp _together_."

Well that was it then.

"We'll do it quickly." I said, kissing Ino briefly and then going over to Neji. After a few minutes, we decided that it was Ino's job to collect leaves for the shelter as Neji and I bent over trees to use for the base.

"How about these trees?" Neji said.

Was he kidding? "They might break." I said. "I think they need to be slightly bigger."

I searched for a size that I could be happy with. "Definitely these." I said, pointing to a pair of trees. I grabbed one to pull over but it was a little harder than I had expected…

But Neji didn't bother offering to help.

"Need a little help?" Ino asked.

That would have been a shameful charity…

"I…can handle it…" I said.

"Doesn't look like you can." Ino said with a sigh. She came over and grabbed the tree and we easily pulled it over. She kissed me.

We both stood there like fools for a minute with a tree bent over. Neji was off doing whatever so he wasn't about to tie it for us…

"Who's going to tie it down?" Ino said.

"See, I was gong to have YOU do it." I admitted.

Ino laughed.

"I don't even have a rope with me right now." Ino said. "Well, no use holding it anymore, right Sasuke?"

Well I probably could have held on to it while she got the rope and—

I was interrupted from my trail of thought though, because Ino had just suddenly let go of it in such a fashion that she almost HELPED it snap back up to it's regular position. I don't know exactly what happened, but all I knew was that my shoulder was in excruciating pain and I suddenly found myself kneeling on the ground.

"Sasuke!" I heard Ino yell. "I'm SO sorry!"

Though I was not crying, tears started to weld up in my eyes. "No…" I said. "It's fine. It doesn't hurt that much."

Who was I kidding? It hurt like…I don't know. It hurt a lot.

"You must not have tied it tight enough." Said Neji condescendingly.

"We didn't tie it at all." Ino said, as she put her arms around me. I did feel a little better being held, but any pressure on that side of my body was making me feel sick.

"Do you think the bone might have snapped?" Neji said.

Bone? Snapped? Not likely. I'm much stronger than that.

"It's broken!" Ino gasped. "No it's not!"

"Yeah…" I agreed with her, trying to stand up. "It's fine…"

"Sit down Sasuke!" said Ino, pulling on my shirt. I didn't want to resist at all because if I could avoid any pain, I was definitely going to do whatever it took.

"Listen to your girlfriend, Sasuke." Said Neji, turning away. "I'm not a medic but even I can tell by looking at you that you broke your collarbone."

I couldn't have a broken collarbone.

"I probably just pulled a muscle." I said, standing up just to prove they were both overreacting.

Ino immediately followed after me.

I could feel myself getting a little dizzy so I had to lean up against a tree. I was getting a bit of tunnel vision, but I was probably just in shock.

The mission was OVER…I couldn't be injured NOW…

By Ino no less…

I think I sustained more injuries from Ino than from missions…

"I think we should get your shirt off your arm." Ino said.

I didn't know what good that would do but I was willing to try anything. I took left arm out of the sleeve easily…

Ino helped get the shirt up over my head. This was the part that I had been dreading.

She carefully tried to maneuver the shirt around my arm but everything at this point hurt so no matter how carefully or slowly she did it, it was going to be painful.

"Should we…" Ino said. "Wrap your shirt around your arm? Give you a sling?" The last thing I wanted was to throw my arm around more when I should have just been resting it.

I guess this attitude was apparent to Ino because she said the line that I heard quite often.

"Sasuke, stop being a baby." She said, giving me a light hit on the side.

But the hit didn't feel so light.

"I'm sorry!" she apologized frantically. What exactly was Neji doing? I knew he wasn't a serious medic or anything, but I also knew he had trained for a little while as one. Shouldn't he be saying something on the matter?

I was finding it harder to breath.

"You could help you know." Ino said to Neji. I guess she had been thinking the same thing as me.

"Sasuke needs to be put out of his pain." Neji said.

"I'm fine, just give me a minute to shake it off." I said, though I really would have liked to be put out of pain if he had any means of doing so.

But then I felt pain.

On the back of my neck, I felt a suddenly jolt of sharp pain.

However, after that, there was no pain.


	90. Rock Lee: Girl Friends

Rock Lee; 7 Years Later

Age 20

-Girl Friends-

Guess what!

I'm a jounin!

And I'm also a teacher! Just like Gai.

But…Gai must be an even more amazing person than I originally believed him to be. To be able to train three students for as long as he did and still want to teach… that is truly admirable.

I had only had my students for two days before I knew they were not fit to be ninjas. None of them could use Ninjutsu or Genjutsu and while the same applies to me, they were pathetic at Taijutsu as well! And it was all three of them!

So, I sent them all back to the academy to brush up on their training and decided to speak with the Hokage to see if I could get some new students.

I'm still amazed that Shikamaru is the Hokage! Wow! I never would have thought that someone like him could be the Hokage! But I'm sure if the previous Hokage nominated him, he must be the right man for the job.

Though he is young. Younger than ME.

On my way there, I spotted Tenten out of the corner of my eye.

I never knew what to say around her. I have a girlfriend but something about Tenten always makes me need to remind myself of that. I don't want to say I'm in love with Tenten because I love Garu but why do I have to keep saying that?

Maybe it's because we're such good friends!

"Hey Tenten!" I said, waving to her in a way that suggested that we were friends but nothing more.

"Hi Lee." She said with a friendly smile that was definitely not a smile of someone who was in love with someone else who already had a girlfriend.

"What's up?" I asked her with little intention of seeing if she were busy later and NO intention of seeing if she wanted to date me.

"Not much right now." She said with a shrug, obviously with no strings attached.

I needed to keep on my way. My conversation with Tenten should be as brief as possible just in case something is there on HER side because it's definitely not on my side.

After all, I have a girlfriend.

"Well, it was nice talk to you." I told her, taking a step toward her. She was standing in my way but only because she happened to be standing there at the time.

"I'll talk to you later, I guess." She told me, not stepping out of my way. She probably didn't realize that I was trying to walk there.

I reached out and gave her a hug. We were good friends, she wouldn't take anything more from that. I mean, I certainly wasn't. It was a FRIENDLY hug. Friends do that all the time! Especially guy friends to girl friends.

But not GIRLFRIENDS. Girl friends. With a space in between.

I walked away from her, feeling slightly empty. Maybe I should have hung out with her. We ARE good friends after all.

Just as I was about to turn around and pursue her for a friendly activity, I saw another person in front of me.

SHINO!

Well, it's not like Shino and I are good friends. Not to the extent me and Tenten are after all.

"Hey Shino!" I greeted him. He didn't respond but he looked at me so I guess he heard me. "What's up?"

"I'm going to the Hokage's office." He told me.

He DOES speak!

"Me too!" I told him. Wow! We have similar interests. "How come?"

"Because I have three students that I was teaching…" he started. "And I don't want to teach them anymore."

We have a lot more in common than I thought.

"Wouldn't you know it Shino?" I asked him. "I'm doing the exact same thing! We can walk together!"

"Whatever." Shino said with a shrug.

We might as well not have been walking together.

"Why don't you want to teach your students anymore?" I asked him to create conversation.

"It's not THEM." He admitted. "I just don't want to teach anymore."

Those poor students. No teacher for them…

Wait a minute!

"Hey Shino!" I said. "What if I took YOUR students!"

"We'll have to talk that over with the Hokage." Shino said.

"We WILL." I said firmly. What a great idea we came up with!

So we continued walking to the Hokage's office until we got there. It didn't take long, it's in the center of everything.

"I'm sorry, but the Hokage is busy." Said some guy with a really messed up face. I had seen him around but…why was his face like that?

"But we MUST see him now!" I told him. It was a lie. I could see him anytime. I just didn't want to have to walk down here again.

"I'm sorry…" said the guy. He glanced over at Shino. I think Shino's appearance scared him or something because he sighed, looking defeated and opened the door the Hokage's office.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Hokage." He said. "But they didn't want to wait forty-five minutes to talk to you."

I looked over to see Shikamaru sitting at his desk.

"It's okay, Raido." He said, looking annoyed. He waved the guy away and looked at me and Shino. "So what is so important that you needed to see me so desperately?"

"The guy at the door told me that you were busy!" I told him. "I was willing to come back later!"

I know it was a lie but you always have to look good in front of the Hokage. Even if you DO know him personally.

"I wasn't." Shino said. I shrugged. Okay then.

"So…?" Shikamaru led us as if we weren't going to continue a second later.

"I resign from my teaching position." Shino said.

"You've only been teaching for two days." Said Shikamaru.

Shikamaru definitely didn't look happy.

"I know." Shino said. "Teaching is not for me."

"And your students?"

"I had to fail them."

Shikamaru frowned, looking pained. Being Hokage must be fun!

"Shino, you don't do that." Shikamaru told him. Should I tell him that I did the same thing?

"That's why he's here." Shino explained as he turned and pointed to me.

"Yeah!" I said, agreeing with Shino.

"All right, explain to me." Shikamaru led us again.

"Well, Shino has students that he doesn't want…" I began. "And I have students that I don't want…"

"What's wrong with your students?" Shikamaru interrupted me.

I needed to sugar coat it to make me seem better.

"I'm not a strict teacher…" I started. "But none of them were very good at all."

I saw Shikamaru nod so I continued.

"The three lowest ranked students in the academy…" I reminded him enthusiastically.

"They were three students who couldn't use ninjutsu and genjutsu." Shikamaru told me. "I figured you could work with them."

"Yes…" I said. Time to lie again. "I was unaware of that."

"So what happened?" Shikamaru said.

"I sent them back to the academy for another year." I told him.

Shikamaru paused for a minute or two. Maybe he was thinking.

"Okay." He said. "Here's the plan."

"I don't want Lee's students." Shino said. No one wants them. "I don't want to teach anymore."

"I know." Shikamaru said with a raised eyebrow.

He fished through his drawers and pulled out some folders.

"All right." He said, going through one of the folders, pulling a pencil out of his desk.

"Lee, I'm giving you Shino's students." He said, writing some stuff down on a few pieces of paper. "They will need to be informed of this and that they didn't really fail."

All right! I hope Shino's students are youthful.

"Great!" I said, trying to sound as excited as possible.

"Yes…" Shikamaru said, looking away from me. "And Shino…you're done."

"Good." He said as he left. Thanks Shino!

Oh wait!

"What about my old students?" I asked Shikamaru.

"There is another teacher who failed her students." He told me. "I will give them to her but if they are as bad as you say, they will probably be failed anyway."

"Okay!" I told him. Then I gave him the thumbs up. Gotta impress the Hokage. Then he'll give you what you want.

"You can go now." He said.

"Thanks Shikamaru!" I told him. Then I paused. Is that what I call him? "I mean…thanks Mr. Hokage, sir!"

As I walked out the door, I saw something sitting by the door. It was Shikamaru's Hokage hat.

He couldn't be the Hokage without it!

"Oh!" I said, to get his attention.

"Yes?" Shikamaru said.

I bent over and picked up the hat. If I were the Hokage, I'd wear it all the time!

"The Hokage must always wear his Hokage hat!" I said. I turned to Shikamaru and tossed him the hat. Unfortunately, it doesn't throw quite like a shuriken and Shikamaru didn't exactly DIVE to catch it so I ended up accidentally knocking over a pile of papers.

"Oops!" I said. I hope he didn't hate me now. "Sorry!"

"It's okay, Lee…" he said. "Just go."

I think he's going to act as though nothing happened!

I bowed to him and left.

I think things went well!


	91. Uzumaki Naruto: Return Home

Uzumaki Naruto; 7 Years Later

Age 19

Return Home-

Kiba, Chouji, Gai and I had just returned from our excursion in the mountain.

Our two year excursion in the mountain.

After checking in with the Hokage to inform him (apparently Shikamaru was the Hokage now) that we were back, he allowed to us to leave.

Speaking of Shikamaru's the Hokage…what?

Why?

What about me?

You can't just become the Hokage while we're gone like that! It's doesn't happen that way.

I wanted to be Hokage…

I had thought for a little while that being the Hokage didn't matter to me but that was certainly short lived.

I quickly realized that being the Hokage was the only thing I could do with my life and now that Shikamaru was the Hokage, he probably was never going to give it up!

TO ME!

Since I will definitely be the next Hokage…AFTER Shikamaru.

He had really surprised us when we had walked in… but especially Chouji. He looked like he was going to faint and have a heart attack.

But this might be a good thing. Now that Shikamaru's the Hokage, we'll probably automatically become chuunins just because we know him. Then again, it's not like we need the inside connections after two years of training in the mountains.

The three of us were going to dominate the Chuunin exam… but especially me!

I was going to become a chuunin!

"This chuunin exam will be no problem this time around!" Kiba announced randomly.

It might have not been random, but I had been on a trail of thought that he had interrupted so it certainly seemed random to me.

"Yeah, I know!" I agreed. "I am SO ready for it!"

"Do you think we'll be able to pass?" Chouji said.

I was GOING to tell him that he was a fool for even beginning to doubt us, but Kiba did the job just fine.

"Of course we will!" he said.

Chouji had gotten huge in more ways than one in just two years.

Kiba had also gotten a lot taller and, much to my dismay, a lot more attractive than even me.

As for me? I looked pretty much exactly the same as when I had left. Typical huh? That sort of stuff always happened to me.

It was only a matter of time before we would crash into…

"Sakura!" I exclaimed loudly.

There she was!

Right there!

She was so beautiful!

And, after two years of pining for her, I could only hope that she had not been taken by another guy!

Naw, she was definitely saving herself for me.

"Naruto?" she said.

Then she…was that a smile?

Yes, most definitely a smile!

"So you're finally back?" she said.

There were hundreds of things that I wanted to say to her!

I wanted to tell her about the training we had to endure!

I wanted to ask her how her training was going!

I wanted to tell her that all of the letters she had written to me while I was up in the mountains had somehow gotten lost and I hadn't gotten a single one so I hoped she has copies!

"Kiba?" Sakura said suddenly just when I was going to tell her how much I loved her. "Is that you?"

Uh oh.

"Who else would it be?" Kiba said.

That's when I noticed that Hinata was there too.

"I was so worried about you Kiba…" said Hinata timidly. She was so WEIRD!

Kiba, Kiba, Kiba!

Why was everything always about HIM?

Why were all the girls always paying attention to HIM?

What about ME!

Why did _I _always have to get stuck on the same team as someone who is so much better looking than me so that even though I am gorgeous and handsomely attractive, next to him I just look like a fool!

I tried to get Sakura's attention, but she seemed completely entranced by Kiba.

This made me SO angry!

I mean…Kiba KNEW that I loved Sakura! Besides, Kiba had been going on for almost a year about how much he missed Hinata and how he was going to ask her out on a date when we got back! So WHY he was trying to seduce Sakura was beyond even me!

He had no right to do so!

I noticed that Sakura and Hinata started talked privately.

I couldn't hear anything they said and, even though I wanted to know what they were talking about, I had to turn to Chouji and Kiba and tell them something important.

Well, actually, I had to tell KIBA something important.

I had to make sure he knew that Sakura was mine.

"So what do you think?" I said, thinking of a way I could say this so I wasn't saying straight out that Kiba wasn't allowed to ask her out. I mean, we were pretty good friends now. "Should I ask Sakura out on a date now or wait for her to ask me?"

"What if she doesn't ask you?" Chouji asked.

"Oh come on…" I said, not needing to hear that. "I've been gone for two years! She probably misses me so much!"

"I'm going to ask Hinata out." Said Kiba, getting the attention to himself.

AS IF we didn't know he was going to do that.

But if he had been planning on doing that then WHY was he making the moves on Sakura?

"Like we didn't know you were going to." I said.

Well, it was time for me to get the girl in the end just like every hero of ever story.

We all turned back around in unison.

I opened my mouth to ask Sakura out on a date.

"Kiba, what…" Hinata began.

"Kiba, are you doing anything later today?" Sakura interrupted.

WHAT! NO! SAKURA IS MINE! DIDN'T WE JUST GO THROUGH THIS!

"I might be." Kiba said.

NO! THE ANSWER IS NO!

"Well what would you say to a date?" she asked.

AHHHHHHHHHHH! NO! DATE ME, SAKURA!

"…All right!" Kiba said.

WHAT HAD WE _JUST _TALKED ABOUT!

I didn't know what to say!

I suppose I was in shock with my mouth hanging down to the ground because I could not believe what had just transpired.

Not only had I reminded him that Sakura was mine, but he had just reminded us that Hinata was his!

It didn't make any sense!

Why was he doing this to me!

Why was Sakura doing this to me!

"That wasn't so hard!" said Sakura to Hinata.

"Ha ha…" said Hinata. "Yeah…"

"Hinata, are you unhappy about it?" asked Kiba.

"No." Hinata said. "Have a good time. I have to go."

With that, Hinata ran away.

AH! Could Kiba be any STUPIDER!

It was so obvious that Hinata loved him! Any IDIOT could see that, even Kiba!

And, besides, I could have SWORN that he had just so recently convinced us that he was going to ask her out!

"Have a good time?" said Kiba.

"A good time?" Sakura said. "I'll make sure we have a GREAT time."

NO! _I _want to have a great time with Sakura!

"WE?" Kiba demanded of her. Then he turned to both his dogs that barked something incoherent to him. "You're not the only one!" he said.

I finally was able to speak.

"Kiba!" I yelled. "How could you!"

Kiba looked around frantically.

He put his dog down and ran in the general direction that Hinata had gone off in.

Everything processed in my head.

What if this had been one big misunderstanding?

What if, for some strange reason, Kiba had thought that Hinata was asking him out?

Kiba's stupid enough to think something like that.

"Ha!" I cheered. "He DOES still love her!"

"Naruto, I don't know if that's very nice to just ANNOUNCE that to everyone." Said Chouji.

"So what?" I said.

I had recently come to a wonderful realization and I was going to be vocal about it.

"Hey, didn't Kiba say he'd go on a date with me!" said Sakura.

"Who cares about Kiba?" I said, getting the courage to ask Sakura out finally. "Come on, Sakura! Come on a date with me! Or…" What if it was too early for a date? "…not a date! Just a welcome home dinner!"

Sure, I'd disguise it as a welcome home dinner but it would definitely be a date.

Sakura only stood there with her eyes popped out.

She wasn't moving.

She was just so excited that I had finally asked her out.

**Thatwas be the final year posted. If you're interested in seeing a continuation even further, you can visit our site that you can find the URL to on our user page. Thanks so much for reading, everyone!**


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